Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 26: In another instance of deteriorating law and order situation in Bihar ahead of the state Assembly elections later this year, a 26-year-old woman appearing for physical test during a Home Guard recruitment drive in Bodh Gaya was allegedly gang-raped in a moving ambulance while being transported to a hospital after collapsing in the ground.
In her statement, the victim alleged that she was sexually assaulted by three to four persons inside the ambulance while being taken to Anugrah Narayan Medical College and Hospital (ANMCH) in Gaya. However, the police said two persons – ambulance driver Vinay Kumar and technician Ajit Kumar – were arrested within two hours of the complaint being lodged.
The alleged assault occurred on July 24, during an ongoing Home Guard recruitment exercise at the Bihar Military Police grounds in Bodh Gaya. According to police, the woman fainted while undertaking a physical endurance test, part of the standard procedure for recruitment.
Event organisers arranged for her immediate evacuation to a hospital via an ambulance stationed at the site. The woman alleges she was raped by multiple individuals inside the ambulance while she was unconscious. Following her statement, an FIR was registered at the Bodh Gaya police station.
An SIT and a forensic team were deployed to probe the matter. Within hours of the FIR, the SIT arrested two suspects identified as Vinay Kumar, the ambulance driver, and Ajit Kumar, the technician on board. The two men are currently in police custody and are being interrogated. Officials confirmed that CCTV footage from the vicinity has provided confirmation of the vehicle’s route and timeline.
According to the police, the complaint woman stated that she lost consciousness during the physical test and was only partially aware of the events during the transport. She later informed police and hospital authorities that three to four men inside the ambulance raped her.
City SSP Ramanand Kaushal said, “On July 24, during a Home Guard recruitment race at BMP Bodhgaya, a female candidate fainted and was taken to the hospital… She reported a rape incident involving two accused—an ambulance driver and a technician—both of whom have been arrested and are undergoing medical examination.”
Vinay Kumar hails from Gaya district, and Ajit Kumar is a resident of neighbouring Nalanda district. The victim, who belongs to the Imamganj police station area in Gaya, near the Jharkhand border, had reportedly fainted during the physical test on Thursday due to heat and humidity. She was referred to ANMCH for treatment, where she later alleged that she was assaulted inside the ambulance. She said she became aware of the assault after regaining consciousness.
The FIR was filed the next day, on Friday. Following this, the police formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and arrested the two accused. “Soon after the police came to know about the incident, an SIT was formed, and they arrested two people in the case. CCTV footage and other technical surveillance were monitored by the team. Further investigation is on,” Senior Superintendent of Police, Gaya, Anand Kumar told local media. The victim is currently undergoing treatment at ANMCH.
The incident drew sharp political reactions, with Rashtriya Janata Dal leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, taking to social media on Saturday to criticise the government. “Shall we say this is a rakshas raj [reign of demons] in Bihar, or a durachar raj [reign of misgovernance] patronised by criminals? Or the mahajungle raj [reign of lawlessness], or the misrule of (PM) Modi and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar?” he wrote.
“Honour of mothers, sisters, daughters and innocent girls is being looted every day in the democratic rule of Modi and Nitish, but neither any minister nor deputy chief minister dares to wag his tongue on the uncontrolled incidents of crime, rape, and corruption,” Mr Yadav said.
He further added, “If the blood of the so-called intellectuals and just people does not boil on such incidents, then they should be considered as extreme casteist and discriminatory beings.” Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) chief and MP from Hajipur, Chirag Paswan, also criticised the Nitish Kumar-led government and questioned the functioning of the State police in the wake of the incident.