Police counting on faulty CCTV footage

Employee of Gurgaon-based BPO was abducted and sexually assaulted inside a tempo by four men and then dumped near Mangolpuri in Delhi

Employee of Gurgaon-based BPO was abducted and sexually assaulted inside a tempo by four men and then dumped near Mangolpuri in Delhi

It's been more than forty eight hours, but the picture remains hazy. That's because the CCTV footage available with the police in the gangrape case of a 30-year-old Mizo woman in the Capital, is anything but explicit.

Representative pic

CCTV cameras were installed at three different locations along the way which the accused persons took after abducting the employee of a Gurgaon-based call centre inside their vehicle. But only one camera could capture them.

"One of the cameras was not working while the rapists were out of the range of another one. The third camera has some footage of the alleged accused. Analysts are going through the CCTV footage but the pictures are blurry." said a senior police official. He added that though the video is faulty but the investigation of the case depends on it.

Team effort
Fifteen teams of senior police officials have been formed to crack the case of North East girl working with BPO. DCP of south Delhi HGS Dhaliwal said the rapists had stopped their vehicle at a nearby petrol pump because they needed diesel. He said that they will interrogate the petrol pump attendant.

Meanwhile a senior police official close to the investigation said that police is mulling over preparing a sketch of the accused persons soon with the help of the victim.u00a0

"Police have found an eyewitness who is a petrol pump attendant. When the accused will be arrested we will call this attendant for an identification parade in court," he said.
The official said that they are talking to the victim, who is traumatised at the moment, and will release the sketch soon.

Cab driver blamed
Cops have also blamed the victim's cab driver in the matter. "He dropped her at distance from her home. That is also a reason behind the incident. The cab driver should have dropped her at her doorstep," said an official.
A police source said that the cab driver is also under scanner and will be questioned soon. "He may have given tip-off to the accused. But we are not sure yet," stated the police source.

Police suspect that the accused had come with a plan. "They knew where the cab driver will drop her and who will be with her. They knew that there is no security guard in the street and the lane is isolated. They waited till her cab returned and attacked the victim and her friend. They wanted to kidnap both girls," said a senior police official.

Armed to the teeth
The official said that the accused were carrying fire arms to deal with neighbours if anyone came forward to rescue the victim.

"They may have been following the victim without letting her know and had chosen the right time to capture her along with her friend. They may have pre-decided the way to take the victim to an isolated place to rape her," said the official.

The victim Neha (name changed), a native of Mizoram had been living in a two BHK flat in Moti Bagh area for the past two and a half years along with her cousin Suzi. Speaking to this reporter, her landlord said that no guard was employed by them who could prevent the incident. He said that they employ a security man each year only during winter. "Anil Sharma, the area councillor, is my cousin," he said.

Call centres under scanner

The rape case has brought Gurgaon call centres under the scanner of the police for lack of security being provided to women employees. While Gurgaon Police have issued several guidelines to BPOs regarding the safety of women employees, but not much has changed.
"The companies have to follow the guidelines laid out for the safety of women employees. It has been brought to our notice that a number of them are not following them. Strict action will be taken if we find someone's involvement in any criminal activities," said S S Deswal, Gurgaon Police Commissioner. Women staffers are now demanding that the companies and the police should take some necessary steps to provide security to their employees.
"Rather than dropping them near the colony gate, women should be dropped right outside their homes. In case this is not possible the cab driver should wait till they enter their house," said Anjali, a call centre employee.
As per the guidelines, a security observer should be present in the cab but this is hardly followed. "Night patrolling should be enhanced for the safety of women. There must be a security guard in each cab to ensure that the women reach home safely," said Madhulika another BPO employee.

He give chase

Danny a Delhi University student who lives right in-front of the victim's house did chase the accused but they managed to flee. Danny said that he was at his rented accommodation on the first floor of his house when he heard a noise outside.
"I heard a girl shouting: "They will kidnap me." I ran downstairs, raising an alarm. I noticed two persons running behind the girl on the street. As soon as they saw me they fled. I chased them but they boarded into a halted tempo and drove away," said Danny.
He said that it was a friend of the rape victim who was shouting for help as she was being chased. Danny is a student of Moti Lal Nehru College of Delhi University.