Jharkhand: Court sentences five men to 25 years in jail for gang-rape

A court in Jharkhand's West Singhbhum district on Thursday sentenced five men to 25 years of imprisonment for gang-raping a college student. The woman was in the company of her fiance at the time of the crime.

The court convicted Singhrai Purty alias Pintu Purty, Haricharan Padeya alias Lokeya, Haricharan Purty alias Jaroi Purty, Chandra Purty alias Vishal Purty and Suleman Purty alias Soley under IPC Section 376(D), which deals with gang rape, and pronounced the sentence.

The court also imposed a fine of Rs 30,000 on each of the convicts, all of whom belong to Katiguttu village in the Mufassil police station area.

The incident happened on September 21, 2023, when the woman was out with her fiance, a man from Kharsawan. Their marriage had been fixed for 2024.

The two went for a stroll and reached a field in Katiguttu village, where a youth approached them and questioned their presence there. When the fiance told him that they had come for a walk, three more youths arrived.

They allegedly abused and assaulted the fiance and misbehaved with the woman, according to the FIR.

The fiance then rushed towards the village to seek help. The youths allegedly took the woman to an isolated place and raped her.

The victims managed to return home and narrated the incident to their families, following which a police complaint was lodged, and the accused were arrested.