The Nilgiri police, after registering a case of cheating and rape, have intensified steps to nab the culprit. The 20-year-old victim was allegedly raped in a lodge near the Baleswar railway station by the accused Srikanta Behera (25) of village Rangamatia giving assurance that he would marry her. Behera used to work in a company in Bengaluru and the victim of the neighbouring village Khulia had love relationship with him for about four years.
Recently, Behera informed the victim on phone that he was coming to Baleswar to marry her and asked her come to Baleswar town from Nilgiri. He had told her that he would marry her in a temple and then within two to three days they would go to Bengaluru. The woman without informing her parents came to Baleswar on April 15 with some cash and gold ornaments for marrying and fleeing with Behera.
She in her complaint to the police said that after she came to Baleswar she and Behera stayed together in a lodge near the railway station for two days. Behera after applying vermilion on her forehead had physical relationship with her against her will. Afterwards, Behera asked the victim to take off all gold ornaments and hand over the jewellery to him along with her cash of Rs1,500 as there was a fear of theft in train.
While both of them moved to the Baleswar railway station from the lodge, Behera went out of platform stating that he was going to purchase medicine. As he didn’t return, the victim finding no way out went back to her parents’ house and narrated how she was deceived by the accused, she stated in her complaint. A case has been registered and efforts are on to nab the culprit, said Nilgiri SDPO Swapna Ranjan Mahapatra.