India: Four Lawyers Accused of Rape, One Detained

Ulhasnagar, India. Photo courtesy of Ulhasnagar Online.

Summary: Police have detained on accused rapist in India, but they are looking for three others.

A domestic worker in Ulhasnagar, India claims she was raped by four lawyers, who used to attack her in her home. On Tuesday, the police apprehended one of the attackers, but four are still on the run, according to The Times of India. The complaint states that the four bad lawyers raped the victim repeatedly over a six month period.

The police have arrested lawyer Satish More, but they are looking for his brother Ulhas, their mother Alka, his sister Sangeeta Shah, and her husband Deepak. Police are also searching for a family friend, Nikumbh Rawal.

Police say that the four men visited the victim often, and they told her that they could get away with their assaults because they knew the law. To combat them, she installed cameras throughout her house, and More was allegedly caught on video raping her at knife point.

The women involved in the case were also guilty of violence. Police say that More’s sister and mother locked up the victim and told Rawal and Deepak Shah to rape her. Later that evening, More and his brother Ulhas returned to sexually assault her again.

More claims that he is innocent and that the woman is lying because he got one of her relatives arrested during an anti-corruption case.

It is unclear what will happen with the four lawyers, but this case is an alarming example of India’s national rape crisis. Rape is the fourth most common crime against Indian women, and in 2014, there were 37,000 reported cases, according to The Daily Beast. That number only reflects the victims who actually filed complaints. Because of lax laws and enforcement, many women still do not trust the system.

The Daily Beast stated that India’s rape crisis could be due to the skewed ratio of men to women. Because there are more men than women, the “bare branches” as they’re called act violently towards females because they literally have no chance of finding a wife. However, China has a similar sex ratio problem, and men there actually treat women reverently because they are so in demand.

The Daily Beast said that the ratio combined with the caste system that places women below men create a country full of aggression and gender violence. Because it is culturally and religiously accepted to believe women are inferior, leadership often does not do enough to prevent and enforce rape laws, which is why most men think they can get away with the crime.

Source: Times of India