All 7 prime accused in Hangal gangrape case granted bail
Haveri: The
Hangal gangrape case
took a dramatic turn 17 months after the gruesome crime, with all the seven prime suspects granted bail by the additional district and sessions (FTSC-1) court of Haveri on Tuesday, following the survivor's inability to identify the suspects in court.
The seven prime suspects — identified as Aftab Chandanakatt, Madarasab Mandakki, Samiulla Lalanavar, Mohammad Sadiq Agasimani, Sohib Mulla, Tousif Choti, and Riyaz Saviker — had their bail pleas rejected multiple times in the past.
Of the 19 suspects initially arrested, including the seven prime suspects, 12 were granted bail and released from Haveri sub-jail 10 months ago.
The 26-year-old survivor had previously complained to the media that she was gang-raped by seven men.
She had made the same statement before a magistrate under CRPC section 164, and even identified the suspects during an identification parade in the presence of Hangal tahsildar.
However, public prosecutor Vijaykumar Patil confirmed that the survivor's reluctance to maintain her previous statements led to the court granting bail to all seven primary suspects.
C Gopal, the then additional SP of Haveri, had prepared a chargesheet that included statements from around 80 witnesses, including forensic experts, doctors, staff members and the owner of the private lodge where the survivor and her male companion were residing before the crime, and others.
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The documenting of evidence spans roughly 1,000 pages, detailing the accused persons' involvement established through DNA samples, hair strands, blood samples, undergarments recovered from the crime scene, identification parade, and CCTV footage.
Moral policing turns into gangrape
Initially, a case of moral policing was filed, involving an interfaith couple residing at a private lodge. However, later, police added the gangrape charge after the survivor confirmed the crime before the magistrate on January 11, 2023.
The survivor, who was with her male companion at the time of the crime, said she was dragged to a forested area near Nalkuru Cross and sexually assaulted by the seven prime accused, who were later arrested from Akkialuru village. During the course of the inquiry, 12 others were arrested who had allegedly assaulted the victim and turned facilitator to the prime accused.
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