A gang of highway criminals attacked a family in the early hours of Thursday, raping four women and killing a male relative on the Jewar- Bulanshahr road, just off the swanky Yamuna Expressway connecting Delhi and Noida to Agra. The incident took place at around 1.30 a.m. on Thursday in Sabota village, a mere 29 km from Noida, adjoining the national Capital.
The six men – carrying rods, knives and a country-made pistol – intercepted the car by laying a trap and puncturing the car. The family was looted of cash and valuables at gunpoint and the men and women thrashed by the robbers. They then gang-raped the women, and shot dead one of the men who tried to fight them off.
Love Kumar, senior superintendent of police, Gautam Budh Nagar said the criminals overpowered the family after the tyres were punctured. “We have lodged an FIR into the matter under appropriate sections including rape. A manhunt has been launched to nab the culprits,” he said.
The incident is a chilling reminder of last year’s, when robbers using a similar modus operandi raped a woman and her daughter when the family was travelling from Noida to Bulandshahr in western Uttar Pradesh.
Law and order on highways in the region has been a cause of concern and the incident has once again exposed the gaps in policing.
When asked about family’s allegation of police reaching late, Kumar said, “Control room received a call at 2.31 a.m. Within 10 minutes, a team left the location to track the caller. As this happened on highway, it took time to locate the family. But by 3 or 3.15 am, the police had rescued the family.”
“In the evening, the women claimed to identify three persons. The women said that three out of six persons were their neighbours. We are probing the case from personal enmity angle as well, “ he added.
Samajwadi Party and Bhaujan Samaj Party, the main opposition parties in the state have attacked the Yogi Adityanath government following the incident.
The complaint to the police said that around 12 am, eight members of a family including four women were travelling from Jewar in Greater Noida to Bulandshahr to meet an ailing relative. About 200 metres from Sabota village in Jewar area, the assailants punctured the Maruti Ecco car in which the family was travelling. When the car driver informed the owner about the incident over phone, six criminals attacked the family. The car was intercepted by the criminals at about 1.30 am.
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