A 27-year-old woman from Bhutan was allegedly sexually assaulted by seven men in Pune. The woman had arrived in India in 2020, initially traveling to Bodh Gaya in search of work before moving to Pune, where the crime took place.
The survivor became acquainted with one of the accused, Rishikesh Navale, who introduced her to his friend Shantanu Kukade. Kukade, reportedly associated with the Nationalist Congress Party, arranged accommodation for the woman and later allegedly assaulted her.
Kukade had recently been arrested in a separate sexual assault case involving two other women. During the ongoing police investigation, new details emerged, revealing that he and his associates had also exploited the Bhutanese woman.
Following these revelations, police arrested six more suspects identified as Rishikesh Gangadhar Navale, Pratik Pandurang Shinde, Vipin Chandrakant Bidkar, Sagar Dashrath Rasge, Avinash Noel Suryawanshi, and Muddasir Ismail Memon. All the accused were produced in court on Tuesday.
Government prosecutor Neelima Ithape Yadav stated that the woman had come to Pune seeking employment. She was alone and vulnerable when the accused allegedly took advantage of her. The survivor has filed a complaint naming each of them.
Prosecutor Yadav argued that the suspects are known to each other and requested further investigation to determine if additional accomplices were involved. She also sought medical examinations for the accused and their police custody to assist in the probe.
The court granted five days of police custody for all the accused.