Mumbai gangrape: Accused's mother may be booked for obstructing justice

After pleading innocence for her son in the gang rape of the 22-year-old photojournalist, cops revealed yesterday that they are contemplating booking the mother for obstructing justice as she helped Kasim Bangali, one of the accused, to evade arrest.

Betraying the nation: Kasim Bangali, the main accused in the gang rape, being escorted by cops after he appeared in court yesterday. His T-shirt with the words ‘betrayed' (circled) echo the sentiments of citizens, who were shocked by the incident. Or perhaps, it's a message to his accomplice Chand, the first to be arrested, who revealed Kasim's involvement in the crime to the cops

According to authorities, while they were trying to trace the accused, Kasim's mother Chand Bibi played a key role in his attempt to dodge the cops. Soon after the news broke that her son was involved in the rape, Chand Bibi, a resident of Agripada, took a train to Nalasopara and left Kasim's children at her distant relative's home.

She then locked up her home to avoid any face-off with the cops. She convinced one of the employees of a petrol pump located opposite her home to update her about the police too.

"Whenever the team of police officials went looking for Kasim at his Agripada home, the employee would alert Kasim's mother, who in turn would alert him," said a Crime Branch officer.

Police said that Kasim, who was arrested on Sunday morning, was hiding among relatives of patients at Nair Hospital. He was in constant touch with his mother who would keep him informed of the cops' movements.

"The accused has confessed how he was hiding with the help of information provided to him by his mother and the petrol pump employee. Hence, we are contemplating booking both of them if we can find enough to substantiate our involvement," added the official.

Victim was made to clean spot after crime
>> After suffering the trauma of rape, Kasim Bangali, who raped the victim twice, asked her to clean the spot with her clothes. Investigators have learnt that after brutally raping the 22-year-old six times over, the five accused took pictures of her on their phone and then threatened her.

Kasim sold his phone to evade arrest
>> Investigators revealed that in addition to getting help from his mother to dodge the police, Kasim also sold off his phone to make some extra cash. The phone is an important piece of evidence, as Kasim had used it to take photographs of the victim after the rape.

Suspected of raping and robbing other women
>> The accused visited prostitution dens in Alexandra and Kamathipura. Cops suspect they have robbed and raped other women in the past; most of them being prostitutes who would come to the mill to meet clients.u00a0