Rape case pair in court (From Asian Image)

Rape case pair in court

2:31pm Monday 22nd June 2009

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Two men accused of raping a British teenager in northern India appeared in court today.

Rakesh Kumar, 38, and Sunil Kumar, 26, have been charged with raping the 18-year-old woman who was in the country as a volunteer. The two men are currently in police custody in Palampur, Himachal Pradesh.

”They will be produced in court, after which they will be sent to judicial custody,” a police official from Palampur police station told the Press Association.

The victim, a gap-year student who was working for a local volunteer organisation, flew back to Britain last night.

”She has gone back to the UK, but will have to return as and when the court demands,” the official added.

The volunteer organisation - Indian Network for Development Exchange (IDEX) - reportedly arranged a chartered flight for her from the state’s Kangra airport to New Delhi, from where returned to Britain.

The woman claimed that she was offered a lift in a taxi while returning home from work on Friday night. Two men in the vehicle reportedly assaulted her before taking her to a secluded place where they raped her repeatedly.

IDEX runs volunteer and travel programmes in India to support local communities in education and development. The victim was on a placement with a small community in Palampur where she taught at a government school.

Police said the British Embassy had been informed.

By Vikas Pandey

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