Trial ends, decision on Friday

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 21

Final arguments ended in the 2017 auto gang rape case on Tuesday. The decision will be announced on Friday by a special court here. Mohammad Irfan, Mohammad Garib and Kismat Ali are accused of raping a 22-year-old girl in the case.

The accused had been charged under Sections 376 D (gang rape) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC. The DNA of all three accused had matched with that of the victim, thus confirming the crime. Mohammad Irfan is an accused in a similar case which dates back to December 2016. 

The victim, originally from Dehradun, stayed in a rented accommodation in Mohali and was returning home from her typing classes in Sector 37 at night. She boarded the auto-rickshaw which already had the three accused, including the driver, in it. The auto driver reportedly drove towards the forest area in Sector 53, where the three allegedly raped her. The images of the accused were caught in a CCTV camera installed at the Sector 42 petrol pump where the accused had stopped to get the fuel tank refilled. 

Irfan (29), the auto driver, was the first one to be arrested on November 24 and had named the other two accused. The duo was arrested the next day in UP. Previously, the police had announced a Rs 1 lakh reward for information on the accused. 

The police had stated that the crime was planned. The three took alcohol and decided to rape a passenger. The auto-rickshaw was rented from a contractor and had a temporary registration number. When the victim boarded the auto, Ali and Garib posed as co-passengers. 

Instead of driving towards Mohali, the auto was first taken to a petrol pump in Sector 42. This is where the accused’s visuals were captured in a CCTV camera. The auto was later taken into the forest area of Sector 53 where the victim was raped. She was left on the road and was seen crying by a passerby, who informed the police.