Police in Gujarat say nine people have been arrested after a woman and her partner were assaulted and subjected to degrading coercion. Investigators are examining both the alleged abuse and the circulation of videos.
Police have arrested nine people, including a woman’s husband and his relatives, after an assault on a couple in Surendranagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. According to police and a complaint cited by the Times of India, the pair were beaten and coerced into degrading acts described as a so-called “purification ritual.”
Investigators say the incident took place on October 4. The man was tied to a tree while the woman was held inside a house. Police are investigating allegations of sexual coercion, as well as claims that the incident was recorded on mobile phones and the videos circulated on social media. This report does not reproduce intimate details of the alleged abuse or use the videos.
Surendranagar Deputy Superintendent of Police Premsukh Delu told the newspaper that officers began searching after a community leader alerted them and videos appeared online. Police found the woman at a house and took her to a station, where she described what had happened after speaking with officers.
Inspector R.M. Sangada said investigators are also trying to establish who recorded and circulated the videos. The accused have been charged under several provisions of India’s criminal code and its information technology law. The charges are allegations, not findings of guilt.