Woman gang-raped over property dispute in Ghaziabad

New Delhi/Ghaziabad: A 36-year-old woman was allegedly raped by five men who were nurturing a rivalry against her over a property in Ghaziabad, police said on Wednesday.

Four of the accused have been arrested, they said.

According to authorities at the Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital, the woman's condition is stable and no internal injury has been found yet.

Sources at the hospital, however, said there were signs of sexual assault and a "foreign object" was found in her body.

Earlier in the day, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) had issued a notice to Ghaziabad police in connection with the case, with the panel chief Swati Maliwal saying the attack reminded her of the Nirbhaya case.

The woman, a resident of Delhi, was found "wrapped in a jute bag, with her hands and legs tied and an iron rod inserted in her private part," the DCW had claimed.

According to Nipun Agarwal, Superintendent of Police (City-I) Ghaziabad, Nandgram police station received a call on the 112 emergency helpline number at around 3.30 am on October 18, saying a woman was found lying on Ashram road.

He said the police took her to a nearby hospital, but she insisted that she be admitted to a hospital in Delhi. She was then taken to GTB Hospital.

In her statement to police, the woman said she had been to Gurugram to celebrate her brother's birthday, a day before the incident

The SP said her brother dropped her back home and some people, who were known to her, picked her up from there.

"Initially, she said there were two people but she later said five men raped her. Four of them have been arrested. A preliminary investigation has revealed that there is a property dispute between the woman and the accused. That case is already in Karkardooma court. The matter is being investigated," Agarwal said.

In a statement, Dr Rajat Jhamb, media spokesperson of GTB Hospital said the woman was admitted to the hospital on Tuesday morning.

He said her vitals were stable.

"No internal injury found till now. She is under observation and admitted to the gynaecology department," he said.

According to the DCW, the woman was allegedly gang-raped and tortured for two days. The notice has been issued to the Ghaziabad Senior Superintendent of Police seeking an action taken report and a copy of the FIR along with details of arrests made.

Maliwal said, "The incident is very horrific and disturbing. It reminds me of the Nirbhaya case. All accused must be arrested immediately and strict action taken against them. I fail to understand how long women and children be subjected to such extreme brutality."