Hubballi: It came to light that a woman was allegedly taken by 2 persons in an autorickshaw and forced to consume liquor, after which she was raped on Friday. The suspects recorded their act on a mobile phone. Police arrested 3 persons in connection with the case. Police commissioner N Shashikumar said that the woman came to Hubballi about a month ago, and was living at temples such as Siddharoodh Math. “Accused Shivanand,29, and Ganesh Giddannavar,31, of Shivashankar Colony took the woman from Ambedkar Stadium in Old Hubballi to a remote area in an autorickshaw on Jan 9. They forcibly made the woman drink alcohol and misbehaved with her. They also had physical contact with her and recorded their act on their mobile phone. As the video was making the rounds in WhatsApp groups, we planned to register a suo motu case. However, the woman herself came forward to register a case on Sunday. We arrested both accused and another person, Pradeep, for sharing the video in WhatsApp groups. The accused are autorickshaw drivers and construction workers,” he added.Meanwhile, some residents of Shivashankar Colony in Old Hubballi assaulted the suspects before police arrested them, alleging that they had brought a bad name to the colony by being involved in a rape case. The commissioner said another case was registered against 4 people for assaulting the suspects. Irked by this, Old Hubballi residents staged a dharna at the police station, alleging police arrested 4 innocent persons who secured the suspects and handed them over to police. The commissioner said that the woman came from another district in the state, after quarrelling with her husband. “She said that her husband assaulted her and some neighbours who came to prevent their quarrel. Her husband is in Shivamogga jail,” he stated.
