“Get them married, get them married, take him to the temple… There was a crowd all around, and torchlights were on. The faces of everyone could be seen, but no one was fully dressed. Some were wearing lungis, while others were in half-dresses. They were sturdy young men covered in mud. It was dark all around, and the entire area was deserted as evening had fallen…”
This was said by a young man from a village adjoining the scene of the incident, who narrated the entire story to a Bhaskar reporter on condition that his name not be published.
He said most of the people present were merely watching the incident. When the accused began creating more trouble, some people rescued the two children.
Meanwhile, the SP said, while providing details of the incident, that eight accused had so far been arrested in the case. The main accused were killed in an encounter. Raids are continuing to make further arrests.
Even 40 hours after the incident, the police had no information about the case. They learnt about it only after receiving inputs from Delhi and Patna. How and when did the entire incident take place? Read the eyewitness account…
Images from the incident show the girl student pleading with the accused, the accused behaving indecently and, finally, some people letting them go.
Read the sequence of what happened that evening…
At 4 p.m. on 19 September, after classes ended at a coaching centre in Jamui, the girl student and the boy student set out together on a scooter to visit the hills.
They reached the hills after a drive of around half an hour. The area was deserted, with villages on both sides, valleys in between, and a road running through them.
At around 5 p.m., the boy parked the scooter by the roadside, and the two sat on a high mound overlooking the valley. Some underage boys then arrived and made comments to them. The two ignored them.
Some more boys then arrived and began watching the two. Meanwhile, one of them started calling more boys on his phone.
The student and the girl began to suspect that something was wrong and feared an untoward incident. They got up to leave, but some boys came over to the scooter and sat on it.
The two students could not see anyone approaching from any direction and could not hope for help from anyone. The girl did not have a phone. The boy took out his phone, but one of the boys struck his hand and snatched it away.
Some older boys had now also joined the minors, and gradually 20-25 boys arrived at the spot. Most of them were between 20 and 30 years old.
The student pleads with him, while the accused continues to touch her arm.
According to the video of the incident that has emerged, read on…
First, some boys stop the girl on the road. While obscenely touching her body, they ask her, “Where do you live? What is your name?” The girl answers their questions.
Meanwhile, some youths separate the boy accompanying the girl from her. The boy is seen away from the spot, while the youths continue to surround the girl.
After this, some youths molest the girl’s private parts and drag her along the road. The girl is dragged in this manner for a long time.
During this, some young men come forward to rescue her and free her from them. However, a short while later, some other young men grab the girl again.
The harassment and dragging of the girl then begin again. The video repeatedly shows some young men grabbing the girl while others try to free her.
The entire incident is reported to have continued for around 20 minutes. However, two videos related to it have surfaced. One is around 1 minute and 2 seconds long, while the other is around 35 seconds long.
“Please, brother, let me go,” the girl repeatedly pleaded with the accused.
What else happened in the incident…
“Get them married, get them married, take her to the temple.”
There was a crowd all around. Torches were lit, illuminating only people’s faces. No one was fully dressed. Some were wearing lungis, while others were in half-dresses. They were sturdy young men covered in mud. It was dark around them. As evening had fallen, the entire area was deserted.
During this, the girl says, “Sorry, brother, please, please. We are not like that. We study at the same school and in the same class. We had come here for a stroll. We are best friends. Being best friends does not mean that we are married.”
The girl says, “We will never come here again. Please, brother, let us go… please, please…”
The girl says “please” loudly.
Even then, a voice comes from the crowd: “You will shout… you will shout…”
The girl is then slapped on her private parts.
Two boys from there say, “Show your ID.”
The boy asks, “Where is the ID?”
The boy then shows his ID.
A man named Ramashish Chaudhary made the video there and showed the entire incident on social media.
The SP briefed the media about the incident at a press conference.
Police remained unaware of the incident for 40 hours The incident took place at 7 p.m. on 19 September. The video was made at the same time and went viral around two hours later. No one got even the slightest hint of the incident throughout the night.
Even on the following day, 20 September, the atmosphere was as though nothing had happened. The police were issuing a press release about a minor case, but had no information about this incident.
This was because the video had not yet circulated everywhere. The following day, 21 September, the police took cognisance of the case after the video went viral across the country at around 10 a.m.
That, too, was not based on its own information, but came after inputs were received from Patna and Delhi. The Jamui SP was informed of the incident over the phone.
As soon as the information was received over the phone, the team became active. At a press conference, the police said they had taken suo motu cognisance of the incident.
The team then reached the homes of the victim boy and girl based on the video footage. A statement about the entire incident was recorded there. About two hours later, the police arrested three minor accused.
The police action then proceeded on two fronts. First, the video showing the student’s face that was going viral on social media was taken down. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) was then formed.
Throughout the day, the SIT identified the accused based on the video. Along with their identification, information about the main accused was also obtained, and a team of the Special Task Force (STF) was called in from Patna.
After investigating throughout the night, the police arrested three accused, including Ramashish Chaudhary, who had made the video go viral on social media.
Accused Hareram injured his leg while fleeing from the police and was admitted to Jamui Sadar Hospital.
Accused were hiding in the forest
Regarding the arrests, SP Vishwajeet Dayal said the accused were hiding in a forest along the riverbank near the village.
As soon as the police team received information about this in the morning, it reached the spot. The entire team arrived, and the area was cordoned off.
During this, the police spotted a man. When the police chased him, he started running. He injured his leg on the terrain in the area and was caught.
During questioning, he identified himself as Hareram Yadav and said the name of his village was Pratappur. Hareram then told the police that Nandan was hiding in the nearby Kasganj forest.
Image taken while the accused was being taken to the hospital after the encounter. Nandan Yadav was seen with folded hands.
After this, a force of around 30 personnel cordoned off the forest from all sides. The police team had moved only a short distance into the forest when it spotted Nandan.
The accused opened fire at the team as soon as he saw the police. The police returned fire, injuring the accused.
After being taken into custody, he identified himself as Nandan Yadav. Nandan was shot in his right leg.
