13 years after Nirbhaya, another December: Faridabad woman gangraped in moving van, two held
Faridabad (PTI): A woman was allegedly gangraped in a moving van through the night and thrown out of the speeding vehicle, suffering serious head and facial injuries, on a desolate road by two men who have since been arrested, police said on Wednesday.
The assault of the mother of three, which brings back the horror of the Nirbhaya rape on another cold December night 13 years ago, took place in the early hours of Tuesday on the winding, little populated Gurgaon-Faridabad, officials said.
Faridabad police produced the two accused, one from Uttar Pradesh and the other from Madhya Pradesh, in a city court on Wednesday and sent them into judicial custody, they said.
The 25-year-old, who had been living at her parents’ home after troubles with her husband, suffered severe injuries to head and her face, which required more than 12 stitches. She has been admitted to a private hospital in Faridabad, adjoining the national capital.
Her condition is critical, and she is not yet fit to record a statement, a police official said.
Recapping what had happened, police said the two men, who live in Faridabad, offered her a lift while she was waiting for transport. Instead of taking her to her destination, however, the two men drove towards Gurugram and raped her inside the van.
She was driven around through the night and thrown out of the vehicle that was moving at a speed of over 90 kmph near Raja Chowk in Faridabad around 3 am.
Bleeding profusely, the woman managed to call her sister, who reached the spot and took her to the Badshah Khan Civil Hospital.
Given the seriousness of her injuries, the doctors advised that she be taken to Delhi, but the family admitted her to the private hospital. A doctor at the hospital said she had suffered significant injuries, including broken facial cavities and a dislocated shoulder.
“Preparations are underway for surgery and the woman is out of danger. It appears the injuries were caused by a hard object or by being thrown onto the road. Samples have been sent to the FSL for examination by police,” he said.
The sister said in her complaint that the woman was seriously injured after she was thrown out of the vehicle. “Considering her condition, we decided to admit her to a private hospital,” the survivor’s sister said.
According to the complaint, the 25-year-old had gone to her friend's house in Sector 23 on Monday evening and was returning home when she was offered a lift by the accused.
The two men are not known to the woman.
The van used in the crime has been seized, and the accused have confessed to the offence, police said.
“Due to the TIP (Test Identification Parade) process, the names and photos of the accused cannot be revealed at this time. A further probe is underway,” said Yashpal Yadav, a spokesperson for the Faridabad police.
The horrific incident has exposed the failure of law and order in BJP-ruled Haryana, state Congress president Rao Narendra Singh said
“Women feel unsafe and criminals are emboldened under the BJP rule,” he alleged.
He added that the incident raises serious questions about women's safety in the state, and blamed the police administration for failing to prevent such crimes.
He also demanded a fast-track trial of the case, and sought adequate compensation and full security for the victim, besides a high-level probe and strict action against the responsible officials.
“There should be no compromise on the safety of Haryana's daughters. The BJP government must take moral responsibility for this incident,” the Congress leader said.
Exactly 12 years ago in December 2012, a young physiotherapy intern, who came to be known as Nirbhaya, the fearless one, was brutally gangraped in a moving bus and thrown out near the Delhi airport, her injuries so grievous that she died 13 days later in a Singapore hospital.
The case led to an overhaul of rape laws in the country.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
