Nursing student drugged and raped in Ratnagiri by auto driver amid outrage over Badlapur sexual assault

Mumbai: A 19-year-old nursing student was allegedly raped by an autorickshaw driver in the Ratnagiri district of the coastal Konkan belt of Maharashtra. This comes amid the outrage over the sexual assault of two minor girls in Badlapur.

The Eknath Shinde-led Maha Yuti government, which is already facing flak after sexual abuse of two kindergarten girls by a male attendant at a private school came to light, has come under further criticism because of the Ratnagiri incident.

Following the Ratnagiri incident, there were protests by nurses and hospital staff demanding action against the accused.

According to reports, the victim had hired an auto-rickshaw to go home, but the driver allegedly drugged her and took her to an isolated location and committed the crime before abandoning the victim.

The survivor is currently admitted to a local hospital.

Ratnagiri Superintendent of Police Dhananjay Kulkarni said that a 11-member Special Investigation Team has been formed to investigate the matter. “The SIT would be headed by a lady Inspector,” he said, adding that teams have been sent out to various locations and the incident would be probed from all angles.

The police teams are securing CCTV footage as part of the investigations. even as the accused is still at large.

NCP (SP) Working President and Baramati MP Supriya Sule said the student was reportedly raped by an auto driver who offered her spiked water on her way home from college.

“While the government continues to lathicharge the aggrieved parents protesting against the assault of schoolgirls in Badlapur, rapists roam free with impunity. It is the lack of intent that has led to complete breakdown of law and order in the state,” she said, adding that the government should take strict action against the perpetrator and prioritise preventive policy intervention.