Gauhati High Court Grants Bail to IIT-G Rape Case Prime Accused

GUWAHATI: Prime accused in the IIT-G rape case, has been granted bail by the Gauhati High Court on Monday citing that the accused is a future asset being a talented student pursuing a technical course.

It added that there is no possibility of him tampering with the evidence if released on bail.

Advocate KN Choudhury informed the single-judge bench of Justice Ajit Borthakur that is accused is a 21-year old and a brilliant student B. Tech Pre-final year in chemical engineering.

He reiterated that the student has been in judicial custody for about 120 days in connection with the case, which is entirely based on the assumption of commission of the offense of rape without any credible evidence.

"On hearing the learned counsel for both sides with reference to the relevant documents such as F.I.R., medical report and statements under Sections 161 and 164 Cr.P.C., the contents of the charge-sheet, the Fact-Finding Committee Report, etc., there is a clear prima facie case as alleged against the accused petitioner," the court order said.

On March 28, 2021, the accused was arrested for allegedly raping a student of the institute during a cultural event as part of Holi celebrations.

The incident happened on the day of Holi (March 28) at the institute's campus. The victim was admitted to the IIT-G hospital and was later taken to Guwahati Medical College Hospital (GMCH) for treatment.

On Saturday, the institute issued a statement and termed the incident "unfortunate" without giving details of the assault or the nature of the victim's injuries. However, doctors at the GMCH said that it was very likely a case of serious sexual assault.

"The victim was brought to GMCH around 12:50 am on March 29. She was initially unconscious and in a state of shock after regaining her senses. She told doctors on duty that she had been sexually assaulted. We immediately followed protocol and carried out a test by a gynecologist as well as a forensic examination," said a senior GMCH doctor on condition of anonymity.

In a similar incident that took place years back in February 2017, two students of IIT-G were arrested for allegedly raping three girls of Gauhati University by lacing their drinks with drugs during 'Alcheringa', the institute's annual cultural festival.

A case (53/21) under section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered at Amingaon police station against the student.

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