The Srivaikundam All Women Police have arrested a 27-year-old labour agent and two minor boys for allegedly sexually assaulting a woman from Assam in front of her husband, in a brutal attack triggered by the couple’s decision to quit their job.
The accused have been identified as Mohammed Mahbul Hussein (also reported as Mohammed Makful Hussain), 27, of Tirunelveli district, and two 16-year-old boys.
According to police, Hussein, who supplies migrant labourers on commission to various units including brick kilns, construction sites, and hollow block manufacturing plants, had sent the married couple from Assam to work at a hollow blocks manufacturing unit in Arasarkulam, Srivaikundam, approximately two weeks ago.
Dissatisfied with the harsh working conditions and meagre wages, the couple decided to leave and seek employment in Kerala. On Sunday night, they hired an autorickshaw to travel to Tirunelveli Junction.
Upon learning of their departure, information allegedly relayed by the two minor boys working at the same unit, Hussein contacted the couple by phone and threatened them to return. When they refused, he and the two minors followed them on a two-wheeler.
The trio intercepted the autorickshaw at an isolated location near Sivanthipatti on the outskirts of Palayamkottai, Tirunelveli. Police said Hussein falsely told the autorickshaw driver that the couple had stolen money from a quarry owner, prompting the driver to leave the scene.
Left stranded, the couple was then forcibly taken to a nearby forest area. There, the husband was beaten up, and the woman was sexually assaulted by the accused.
After the assault, Hussein reportedly called the same autorickshaw driver back. The traumatised couple was dropped at Tirunelveli Junction, where they immediately reported the crime to the Government Railway Police (GRP). The GRP alerted the Thoothukudi police.
Following the complaint, District Superintendent of Police Albert John formed a special team. With assistance from the autorickshaw driver, the police laid a trap and arrested Hussein and the two minors the same night.
The couple was provided medical treatment at the Tirunelveli Medical College Hospital.
The Srivaikundam All Women Police have registered a case under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including gangrape (Section 70), voluntarily causing hurt, wrongful restraint, criminal intimidation, and mischief.
Hussein has been remanded to judicial custody, while the two minors have been lodged in an observation home in Tirunelveli district. As the crime occurred within Tirunelveli district limits, the case is expected to be transferred to the Sivanthipatti police station for further investigation.
Source: Times of India
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