Serious questions have once again been raised over the security arrangements and administrative functioning of Birsa Munda Central Jail in Hotwar, Ranchi, following allegations that a 20-year-old undertrial prisoner was drugged and subjected to gang-rape on three separate occasions inside the prison.

An FIR naming 19 people, including the jail superintendent, the medical officer of the jail hospital, a ward in-charge and police personnel, was registered at Khelgaon police station late on Wednesday evening in connection with the alleged incident. Following the emergence of the case, the police administration has handed over the investigation to the Ranchi City SP for a thorough probe.

According to information received from police sources and the FIR, the victim belongs to the MECON Colony area near Kathal More under the Ratu police station limits. He was lodged in Hotwar jail as an undertrial prisoner in a criminal case. He was released from prison on June 12 after being acquitted by a Ranchi court.

The victim is reportedly suffering from severe psychological trauma following the alleged inhuman treatment and sexual assault inside the prison. Considering his fragile mental condition, he is currently undergoing treatment at the Central Institute of Psychiatry in Kanke, Ranchi.

After remaining in deep shock for a considerable period, the victim recently narrated his ordeal inside the jail to his family members. His family subsequently approached the police and lodged a complaint.

According to the written complaint submitted at Khelgaon police station, a group of inmates allegedly carried out the assaults on three separate occasions, coinciding with the nights of three major festivals — Maha Shivratri, Ram Navami and Sarhul.

The accused allegedly forced the 20-year-old to consume an intoxicating substance, made him wear women’s clothing, including a sari, and then sexually assaulted him one after another. The complaint further alleges that the victim suffered serious bleeding from his private parts and sustained severe physical and psychological injuries due to the assaults and physical violence.

The 19 accused have been named in two categories in the FIR. The first includes several inmates from Wards 14 and 15, along with a canteen worker. Those named include Pintu, Arvind Gupta, Sahil Ansari, Sahil Shah, Rabisar Lohra, Pawan (canteen worker), Mantu, Dhaneshwar Badhai, Shiv Oraon, Ballu, Rehan Golu, Golu Sao and Pogo.

The second category includes the jail superintendent, ward in-charge, medical officer of the jail hospital and police personnel identified as Singh and Santosh Oraon. They have been accused of gross negligence in discharging their official duties, shielding the perpetrators and attempting to suppress the incident.

The complaint also alleges that when the victim submitted a written complaint to the ward in-charge, seeking help, he was abused instead, and his complaint letter was torn up and thrown away.

Furthermore, when the victim approached the jail hospital after suffering bleeding injuries, the medical officer allegedly misbehaved with him and refused to provide treatment.

The complaint also alleges that no mandatory medical examination was conducted before his release on June 12, in violation of prescribed rules and jail procedures, allegedly to conceal the incident.

The police are investigating the allegations.

A serious case of alleged sexual exploitation of minor girls has come to light in Mumbai’s Samta Nagar area, where three accused have been arrested for allegedly raping a 14-year-old girl, recording obscene videos of her and threatening to make them viral. Two other accused are still absconding.

The case involves a minor girl residing in the Hanuman Nagar area under the jurisdiction of Samta Nagar police station. According to preliminary information, the accused allegedly sexually exploited the girl by threatening to circulate her objectionable videos on social media.

During the investigation, police recovered more than 15 objectionable videos involving minor girls from the mobile phones seized from the accused. The recovery has raised concerns about the possibility of other girls being victimised and prompted police to widen the scope of their investigation.

Police are now examining the videos to establish the identities of the girls involved and determine whether more minors were subjected to similar exploitation. Investigators are also trying to ascertain whether the accused were operating as part of a larger network.

According to the preliminary investigation, the accused allegedly recorded objectionable videos of the 14-year-old girl and repeatedly threatened to make them public. They allegedly used these threats to continue exploiting the victim.

A total of five people have been identified in connection with the case. Of these, three have been arrested, while efforts are underway to trace and apprehend the remaining two accused.

The matter also triggered protests by Bajrang Dal activists, following which the Samta Nagar police initiated action.

Police registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and arrested three accused. Further investigation is underway to establish the full extent of the alleged exploitation and identify other possible victims.

The recovery of more than 15 objectionable videos from the accused’s mobile phones has added a serious dimension to the investigation.

The case has raised concerns over the safety of minor girls in Mumbai, with attention now focused on the police investigation, identification of other potential victims and the arrest of the two absconding accused.

A 71-year-old man from Pune was cheated of Rs 22 lakh by cyber fraudsters posing as senior Karnataka police officials and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officers, who threatened him with digital arrest, police said on Thursday.

The incident took place between October 5 and 15. The complainant, Chandraram Balanna Kuttapelli (71), a resident of Alandi Road, received a call from an unidentified mobile number. The caller allegedly introduced himself as a senior police official from Karnataka and later posed as a CBI officer.

The accused told the elderly man that his SIM card had been misused in a child trafficking case. To make the allegations appear genuine, they asked him to transfer money as a security deposit, claiming that the amount would be digitally verified.

The fraudsters subsequently threatened the complainant with digital arrest and allegedly coerced him into transferring a total of Rs 22 lakh to bank accounts provided by them.

Following the complaint, Vishrantwadi police registered a case on November 11 under Sections 319(2) and 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 66D of the Information Technology Act.

No arrests have been made in the case so far.

In a similar incident reported earlier on July 18, cyber fraudsters posing as CBI officials had threatened a 73-year-old Rahatani resident with prosecution in a money laundering case. They had forced him to transfer Rs 22 lakh to what they described as the ‘Supreme Court’s Secret Supervision Account’ for verification purposes. The fraud took place between June 29 and July 3.

The elderly man subsequently lodged a complaint with the cybercrime cell, following which Wakad police registered a case.

According to the complaint, an officer from Wakad police said the fraudsters contacted the victim while posing as IPS and CBI officers. They claimed that his Aadhaar card had been used to purchase a mobile phone and that a complaint had been filed against him.