40-yr-old widow raped in Nagai temple, duo held

The woman had moved to Nagapattinam after she lost her husband and was working as a construction coolie in order to sustain her two daughters. She would stay at her sister’s house during nights and while travelling there, would always be teased by the accused who were identified as M Arun Raj (25) and K Anand (24). Both are construction labourers. She had also informed her brother-in-law about the duo and he had approached the village heads to warn them. However, the two continued to tease her.

On Wednesday, while the woman was on her way to her sister’s place, she was intercepted by the duo who grabbed her, took her to a temple and reportedly sexually assaulted her after gagging her. She later ran back to her sister’s house in the dead of night and her sibling, shocked to see her critical condition, enquired and was told of the incident. The widow was then rushed to Nagapattinam GH. Based on brother-in-law’s complaint, Velipalayam police registered a case against the culprits under IPC Sections and arrested the duo on Thursday night. Velipalayam police inspector P Thiyagarajan said that the woman’s medical tests confirmed that she had been raped.