3 arrested for alleged gang-rape of IIT BHU student, linked to BJP IT Cell, pictures with leaders storm internet

Almost two months after the alleged incident of gang rape of a 20-year-old student of IIT-BHU, three prime accused have been arrested by Uttar Pradesh police on Sunday. The arrested accused are identified as Kunal Pandey, Anand Chauhan, and Saksham Patel, who are all associated with the BJP IT cell, Varanasi.

The alleged incident of sexual assault inside the campus happened on November 1, 2023, leading to a wide-scale student protest. Almost a week after the complaint, the gang rape sections under 376(D) were added to the case following the woman’s statement before a magistrate.

Social media profiles of the arrested accused reveal pictures of them with top BJP leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister Smriti Irani, and BJP IT Cell chief Amit Malviya.

Opposition alleges delay in police action due to BJP’s association with the accused. Even after the FIR was registered on November 2, the arrests happened after almost 60 days. Interestingly the social media accounts of the accused, which are now deactivated after their arrest, were active till Saturday and both Kunal Pandey and Saksham Patel had made posts promoting the BJP party. Saksham Patel’s ‘X’ handle was “@sakshambjp12”.

“This is the real face of BJP. They protect the rapists”, said Manoj Rai Dhupchandi, Samajwadi Party leader. Congress plans to gherao the parliamentary party office of PM Modi in Varanasi on January 2 in protest. Varanasi is PM Modi’s Lok Sabha constituency.

The woman in her complaint filed on November 2 had written “I am a resident of a hostel at IIT-BHU. On November 2, around 1.30 am, I left my hostel for a walk. I met a male friend… We were walking together when… a motorcycle with three men approached us from behind. They parked their motorcycle there and separated my friend and me…They shut my mouth tightly and took me to a corner, kissed me forcibly, took off my clothes, and recorded photos and videos. When I shouted for help, they threatened to kill me. They let me go after 10-15 minutes. When I ran towards my hostel, I heard the sound of the motorcycle. Then, I hid at the residence of a professor, who took me to the security officials”