Naliya gang-rape case: Suspended BJP leaders sent to judicial custody

With this, all the eight accused arrested so far have been sent to jail.

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Police detain an AAP worker during a protest rally in Vadodara. Source: Bhuprendra Rana

The four suspended BJP leaders, who were arrested for allegedly gang-raping a woman, were sent to judicial custody by a court in Naliya town in Abdasa taluka of Kutch district as their police remand ended on Thursday. With this, all the eight accused arrested so far have been sent to jail. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Kutch (West) police produced Shantilal Solanki, Bharat Chauhan alias Bharat Darji, Govind Parumalani, Vasant Bhanushali and Ajit Ramwani in the court in Naliya on Thursday after their police custody ended. The SIT, which is probing the alleged gang-rape case sought extension of custody of some the accused. However, the court turned down the police plea and instead sent the five to judicial custody.

The five were on police remand for the last 13 to 14 days after they were arrested by police early this month. “We had sought extension of police custody of some of the accused. But the honourable court did not grant our plea and have sent the accused to judicial custody,” Janak Aal, head of the SIT told The Indian Express.

Solanki, the main accused in the case filed by a woman from Mumbai, was convener of OBC cell in Abdasa taluka unit of the BJP in Kutch district while Parumalani was general secretary in Gandhidham unit of the BJP. Bhanushali and Ramwani are the sitting BJP councillors in Gandhidham municipality in Kutch. The BJP had suspended the four from primary membership of the party early this month after their names surfaced in the case.

The woman had filed a complaint with Naliya police on January 25 this year alleging Solanki employed her in a gas distribution agency in August 2015 but raped her after spiking her drink. Later, his two friends, Bharat Chauhan and Vipul Thakkar also took turns to rape her and shot videos of the assault. The woman has complained that Solanki threatened to circulate the video clips and blackmailed her to sleep with Ashwin Thakkar, Chetan Thakkar, Parumalani, Bhanushali and Ramwani subsequently. The woman has also alleged that Vinod Thakkar, father of Chetan Thakkar molested her in Naliya.

Vinod Thakkar, Chetan Thakkar and Ashwin Thakkar were sent to judicial custody by Naliya court on Wednesday after their police remand ended. Vipul Thakkar, the ninth accused in the case is still on the run.

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