As the country struggles to recover from the shock of the brutal Kolkata RG Kar Medical College & Hospital doctor rape and murder case, another similar incident from Uttarakhand has added to the nationwide outrage over the safety of women.
A nurse of a private hospital in Uttarakhand's Rudrapur, missing since July 30, was allegedly raped and killed with her face crushed with a stone by the accused who dumped her body in a vacant plot in an Uttar Pradesh village, police said on Friday.
Uttarakhand Nurse Rape Case | What We Know
The Incident: According to the Superintendent of Police of Uttarakhand's Udham Singh Nagar Manjunath TC, the nurse, missing since July 30 while returning home from work, was found dead at a vacant plot of Dibdiba village of Uttar Pradesh's Rampur, near the Uttarakhand border, on August 8.
The Accused: The accused has been identified as, Dharmendra, who worked as a labourer in Uttarakhand's Gadarpur. He was arrested from Rajasthan on August 13, the police officer said, adding he hails from Bareilly district of Uttar Pradesh.
ALSO READ | Uttarakhand Nurse Raped, Murdered While Returning From Hospital: Report
Victim's Face Mutilated: The nurse's body was recovered with her face mutilated beyond recognition, news agency PTI quoted the Superintendent of Police of Uttarakhand's Udham Singh Nagar as saying.
Accused Looted Victim's Belongings: According to police, the accused, after committing the crime, looted all the money from her purse, her mobile phone and other valuables and fled. The spot from where the nurse's body was recovered is not far from her residence in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur district which is on the border of Uttarakhand's Udham Singh Nagar district.
CCTV Tracked Victim: Police began an investigation into the case after the victim's sister lodged a missing complaint on July 31, a day after the incident. SSP Manjunath said the victim was traced with the help of CCTV footage and by tracking the location of her mobile phone.
Accused Says 'Intention Was To Loot': During interrogation, accused Dharmendra revealed that he followed the nurse while she was returning home from work with the intention to loot her as he was in need of money, SSP Manjunath said. However, when she reached a deserted area, he forcibly took her to the bushes and throttled her unconscious with a scarf when she tried to raise an alarm. The accused then raped her and crushed her face with a stone, the police officer said.
The incident comes in the heels of the widespread protest over the rape and murder of a trainee doctor a state-run medical college and hospital in West Bengal's Kolkata.
