New Delhi, Sep 24 A 17-year-old girl who was allegedly raped with a knife at her neck by three men at Delhi’s Aastha Kunj Park later led a Forensic Sciences Laboratory (FSL) team to the spots where she was allegedly assaulted, helping investigators seize biological evidence, including a condom, from the scene, police said.
The rape survivor has told police that each of the three accused allegedly held a knife to her neck while raping her at different secluded locations in the park, according to a senior officer.
The FSL team from Rohini and the district mobile crime team subsequently examined the spots identified by the girl and collected several samples for a scientific examination. A DNA analysis of the biological evidence can help the investigators establish links between the accused and the alleged crime, the officer told PTI.
The girl had gone to the Kalkaji Mandir with her 17-year-old male friend on Monday on the occasion of her birthday. After offering prayers at the temple, the two bought chips and a bottle of water outside the Kalkaji metro station, before entering the Aastha Kunj Park through Gate No. 7.
According to the details of the incident, the two were sitting on a bench and eating chips when three men aged around 30 to 35 years approached them.
They allegedly caught hold of her friend, slapped him and claimed to be policemen when the two questioned them.
The accused allegedly took away their mobile phones and separated the girl from her friend. They allegedly threatened the two and took the girl towards a secluded portion of the park.
One of the accused asked another to take out a gun. The girl told police that the man, whom the others called Asif, was wearing a purple shirt and was the healthiest of the three. He allegedly showed her a black-coloured firearm before putting it back in his pocket.
The three men then allegedly took out knives and took the girl to a dark area of the park.
According to the officer, Asif allegedly removed the girl’s clothes, placed her on a red bench and asked another accused, whom he called Hemu, to keep watch.
Asif allegedly put on a condom, held a knife to the girl’s neck and raped her, the rape survivor alleged.
He subsequently called Hemu, who took the girl to another bench and allegedly raped her while holding a knife to her neck. The third accused, whom the others called Deepu, then allegedly approached her and raped her while holding a knife to her neck.
After the alleged assault, the men instructed the girl to wear her dress quickly and threatened to kill her and her friend if they told anyone about the incident. They returned their mobile phones and took them out of the park, the girl told police.
She then informed her friend about the alleged assault, following which he called the police control room. A PCR call was received around 8:45 pm and a police team reached the two near Gate No.7 of the park.
The girl’s detailed account helped investigators identify the accused as she was able to recall their physical descriptions, clothes and the names or nicknames by which they addressed one another, police said.
She later accompanied a police team to the Aastha Kunj Park and identified the locations where the alleged assault took place. The FSL team and the district mobile crime team examined the spots and collected biological and other evidence, including a condom found near one of the benches.
The samples have been sent for a forensic examination and the investigators are awaiting the results, including DNA profiling, officials said.
Police scanned footage collected from more than 300 CCTV cameras installed in and around the park and along routes leading to and from the area. Around 20 people were initially shortlisted before technical surveillance and local intelligence helped the investigators identify the three accused.
The accused — Asif, Hemant and Mahesh — were subsequently arrested. One of them was injured in retaliatory firing after he allegedly opened fire at a police team, the officials said. All three have been sent to judicial custody.
Police are examining the accused’s mobile phones, contacts and other technical evidence to reconstruct their movements before and after the alleged incident.
The investigators are also looking into the security arrangements at the Aastha Kunj Park, including the deployment of guards and the lack of adequate lighting and CCTV coverage in the secluded area where the alleged assault took place.
Police are also checking whether the accused were involved in any similar incident in the past. No formal complaint regarding such incidents has so far been received, according to police sources.
(PTI News)
