Pune Police crack down on lodges and illegal autos after minor’s gangrape

The Pune Police are cracking down on lodges and hotels across the city to check for violation of rules after a minor girl was gangraped at two lodges near the railway station.

The girl, 14, was admitted to the lodges without the proprietors demanding identity or age proof. Two employees of the railways are among 14 arrested in the case – the others being autorickshaw drivers from the city and one youth from Bihar, who was known to the girl.

“We have seized the registers of the two lodges. We can’t reveal further at this stage,” Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Namrata Patil was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

The police are now verifying whether hotels and lodges are demanding proper identification proofs from people before giving rooms on their premises, and whether they have installed CCTV cameras at the reception and other key points. Strong action will be taken against those found in violation of rules.

Talking about the rape case, the DCP reportedly said: “If the lodge employees had found anything suspicious regarding the age of the minor, they should have alerted the police. But in this case, they did not alert the police, nor did they seek any identity proof.”

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The police are also checking for illegal autos near the railway station, with drivers not possessing a licence, permit or badge. The girl was abducted and raped at various locations across the city by one such group of drivers on August 31 and September 1.

According to the police, the girl had left home around 10.30 pm on August 31 to meet the youth from Bihar at the railway station, who did not turn up for the rendezvous. An autorickshaw driver spotted her crying and offered to drop her home, but instead took her to a lodge and raped her. He then called his friends to participate in the assault, and the group later put her on the Pune-Jammu Tawi Jhelum express.

The main culprit was nabbed once the police, approached by the girl’s parents, investigated CCTV camera footage and spotted the auto driver with the girl at the railway station. He confessed to his crime and named his accomplices.

The culprits are in custodial remand till September 16, while the condition of the girl, who is admitted at a government hospital, is stable.

Also read: Court says sexual history with attacker not relevant to consent