Mangaluru; College student abduction and rape case: Rapist gets 7 years rigorous imprisonment
Mangaluru, June 20: The 6th additional principal and district sessions court on Wednesday sentenced a person to seven years rigorous imprisonment on charges of introducing himself to a college student through WhatsApp, abducted and raped her.
The convicted is identified as Irshad (27) of Kuminadka in Bantwal taluk.
Though the rape allegation was confirmed on Tuesday, the judge reserved the verdict for Wednesday. Under IPC Section 366 (abduction), Irshad has to undergo three years rigorous imprisonment and pay Rs 5000 penalty. If he failed to pay penalty, he has to undergo two months additional imprisonment. In rape charges under Section 376, he has to undergo seven years rigorous imprisonment and pay a penalty of Rs 10,000 and if failed to pay the penalty, he should undergo three months additional imprisonment. In the illegal detention charges under Section 342, and threatening under Section 506, he should undergo additional three months and four months imprisonment respectively, the judge said.
About the incident
An 18-year-old girl studying in a college was included into a WhatsApp group by her friend. In the same group, she was introduced to another student called Rafa. Though the student left the WhatsApp group, Rafa used to message her and she used to respond to those messages. After some days, Rafa wished her for her birthday and informed her to accept a flower bouquet sent through one of the Rafa’s relative. Following this, Irshad had visited the college and gave her the flower bouquet and wished her. After a few days, she shared her problem with Rafa that she was late to classes as she could not reach the college on time from her village. Responding to this, Rafa said she would take her to her village as she will have to go to Mangaluru. The student believed Rafa’s words.
On June 20, 2015 at 7.30 am, a car would come to the place where the student was waiting and Irshad was driving the car. After seeing Irshad, she asked about Rafa. But Irshad said she would get into the car after some time. Believing his words, the student got into the car. Later, Irshad threatened her and took her to Dharwad. When the student did not turn up to the home even after evening, her family members lodged a complaint at Bantwal police station. During the same time, Irshad family members also filed a missing complaint.
After taking her to Dharwad, he got a room at a lodge and raped her in the room. Next day, he took her to Gadag and Hubballi and raped her, it was alleged in the complaint.
Truth uncovered
But in Hubballi, Irshad disclosed the truth before the student. He admitted that he was sending the WhatsApp messages in the name of Rafa. The student came to know that she was cheated. While investigating the missing case, the police managed to take both of them into custody on June 25. When the student was brought to Mangaluru and tested in a hospital, it was confirmed that she was raped.
When she was at the hospital, she came to know that Irshad was married. This has shocked her. She had lodged a case against Irshad in Bantwal police station. Then inspector Belliyappa filed the charge sheet against Irshad to the court under abduction (366), rape (376), illegal detention (342) and threat (506). In the case, total 22 witnesses including lodge records, statements from the staff and doctors report were considered. Judith O M Crasta argued in favour of the government.
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New application filed in SC against Adani group over US indictment
New Delhi: A fresh application has been submitted to the Supreme Court of India, seeking the inclusion of key documents related to the recent US indictment of the Adani Group. Filed by advocate Vishal Tiwari, the petition aims to introduce two critical pieces of evidence into an ongoing case related to the Adani Group's financial practices.
The first document is a formal US court indictment accusing Gautam Adani, his relative Sagar Adani, and other company executives of orchestrating a massive bribery scheme to secure solar energy contracts worth billions of dollars in India. The indictment alleges that over $250 million in bribes were paid to Indian government officials to obtain these lucrative contracts.
The second document is a complaint from the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which accuses the Adani Group of securities fraud. The SEC alleges that Adani executives misled investors to raise funds for these solar projects, despite knowing that part of the capital was linked to corrupt activities.
This development follows the US Attorney's Office's recent charges against the Adani executives, who are accused of masterminding a bribery scheme to secure power supply contracts with state-run utilities in India. The contracts were expected to yield up to $2 billion in profits over two decades.
These charges come amid an ongoing investigation by India's Securities and Exchange Board (SEBI) into the Adani Group, after allegations of stock manipulation and market irregularities surfaced, particularly following the release of the Hindenburg Report in early 2023. The new US legal documents could play a crucial role in strengthening the investigation into the Adani Group's business operations.
