Coimbatore shocker: College student abducted, gang-raped near airport; police launch manhunt for accused
Representative image
In a horrific incident in Tamil Nadu's Coimbatore, a young woman was allegedly abducted and sexually assaulted by three men near the international airport on Sunday night.
The victim, who is pursuing her degree at a private college in the city, was found in a naked condition, severely traumatised in a vacant plot near the airport and was rushed to a nearby hospital.
According to police, the woman was talking to her male friend inside a parked car in a secluded area behind the airport when three unidentified men approached them around 11 pm.
The accused allegedly attacked her friend and forcibly dragged the young woman away into the darkness. They took turns raping her and fled the scene.
The victim's friend, who sustained serious injuries while resisting the attackers, meanwhile reached Peelamedu police station and alerted the cops, according to an IANS report.
During the search, the victim was found lying unconscious and without clothes in a nearby vacant plot.
Police have launched a massive hunt for the accused. They are also examining the CCTV footage and questioning potential witnesses in the area.
Political blame-game erupts
The incident has triggered a political blame game with the opposition parties targeting the M.K. Stalin government over the law and order situation in the state.
“Since the DMK came to power in TN, incidents like these have shown that anti-social elements no longer fear the law or the police,” former BJP state president K. Annamalai said in a post on X.
“From DMK ministers to police officials, there has been a disturbing pattern of shielding sexual offenders instead of ensuring justice. The DMK government has utterly failed in both preventing sexual crimes and providing safety for women,” he said.
Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, too, hit out at the government, accusing it of failing to ensure the safety of women.
India