Palghar gangrape case: 9th accused arrested

Palghar: One more accused was arrested in the rape case of a minor which resulted in nine accused being arrested in this matter. The police after a preliminary investigation have ruled out the narcotic angle of a few arrested accused.

The police are investigating the minor rape case expeditiously and all possible angles to this case are being carefully checked. The police have gathered substantial evidence but are not disclosing it as the investigation is on.

DYSP Neeta Padvi, the investigating office of this case, told FPJ that the narcotic angle which was suspected to a few of the arrested accused is preliminarily ruled out. The victim is stable both physically and mentally and she had undergone a thorough examination in JJ Hospital yesterday. The reports of the investigations are awaited but the victim has sound health. The victim is also undergoing psychiatric counselling and her health is sound, Neeta Padvi said.

The ninth accused was arrested today and he is of the same age group as the other accused who is between the age of 21 and 30 years.

The abandoned bungalow scheme

The abandoned bungalow which is the place of the rape is one of the 52 semi-finished bungalows in the plotting. This plotting is spread over an area of 30 acres. The said area was seized by the order of the court in a financial matter. The land which runs about 60 acres is owned by Dr Abhay Paghare. He had a financial understanding with some developers which escalated into some financial disputes. Recently the court has given a verdict to hand the land and the incomplete bungalows to Dr Paghare but the execution of the order is yet to happen.

As this big area was in the custody of financial institutions the security of the said land was taken care of by that institution. FPJ learnt from sources that there was no security present for the last many years from either of the sides and the anti-social element has a free run in this lonely place.

Many of the locals used to come to this place for drinking alcohol, anti social activities and there was no control over this. The locals had robbed many materials from these under-construction bungalows and no complaints in this context were registered due to a dispute with a financial institution over possession of this bungalow scheme.