Bengal cops rule out gang rape; friend held

Police in West Bengal on Tuesday ruled out gang rape allegations by a 23-year-old medical student in Durgapur, citing investigation and medical reports, and arrested her classmate with whom she had gone outside the college campus for dinner on the night of the alleged incident, a senior police officer said.

- Tanmay Chatterjee

So far, six people, including the woman's friend, have been arrested in the case. “Investigation and medical reports have so far indicated the involvement of only one person. The roles of others are being reviewed. Victims friend is not above suspicion,” Asansol-Durgapur police commissioner Sunil Kumar Choudhary said.

The arrest of the woman's friend, a resident of Malda district in West Bengal, came hours after the police reconstructed the crime scene with the five accused and the survivor's friend, as part of the probe, the officer said.