Haldwani gangrape: 'Absconding' ABVP member, 3 other accused arrested

Four men arrested over the alleged gang rape of a minor girl in Haldwani were sent to jail on Saturday after being produced before a court. One of the accused is a former Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) leader who contested the student union presidential election at MBPG College this year.

Senior Superintendent of Police Manjunath TC said the girl's family had approached Mukhani police station on Thursday and lodged a complaint alleging that four men had threatened the minor and gang-raped her at a hotel.

Following the complaint, police registered a case and arrested the four accused — Dheeraj Bisht, Nitin Pal, Ansh Khatri and Himanshu Goni. All four were produced before a court on Saturday, which remanded them to judicial custody.

According to the police, the accused are members of a group locally known as the RTII gang. Bisht had contested the MBPG College student union election this year as an ABVP candidate for the president's post.

The involvement of a former student leader in the case has drawn attention to the accused's political and campus affiliations. However, the allegations against all four men remain subject to the ongoing investigation and judicial proceedings.

Police have also initiated an inquiry into the functioning of the property where the alleged assault took place. Investigators found that the operator of Trishul Homestay had provided a room to the occupants without checking their identity documents.

The police said several other irregularities had also emerged during the investigation. The nature of these additional lapses was not specified in the report.

The findings have brought the homestay's compliance with basic guest-verification procedures under scrutiny. Providing accommodation without checking identification documents can also raise questions about the monitoring of such establishments and the enforcement of applicable rules.

ABVP condemns incident, seeks strict action

Meanwhile, the ABVP issued a statement condemning the alleged assault and said it would extend all possible assistance to ensure justice for the survivor.

The organisation's state secretary, Yashwant Pawar, said the ABVP strongly condemned the allegations and wanted the administration to take the strictest possible action against those found responsible.

The organisation's statement came after the alleged involvement of a former ABVP leader in the case became public. Pawar reiterated that the survivor should receive justice and assured that the organisation would extend assistance in the matter.