Employee of Delhi's Pitampura spa gang raped, two suspects arrested
The woman, in her FIR, alleged that the manager of the spa centre she worked at and a client there -- identified as Rahul (goes by first name), 21, and Satish Kumar, 48, residents of Jawala Puri Camp 4 and Nizam Pur -- raped her on August 4 while she was at work.
Two people have been arrested for raping a 22-year-old woman at a spa in northwest Delhi’s Pitampura, the police have said, adding that the two owners of the facility have also been arrested in connection with the incident.
The woman, in her FIR, alleged that the manager of the spa centre she worked at and a client there -- identified as Rahul (goes by first name), 21, and Satish Kumar, 48, residents of Jawala Puri Camp 4 and Nizam Pur -- raped her on August 4 while she was at work.
Deputy commissioner of police (northwest) Usha Rangani said that around 10pm on August 4 the Maurya Enclave police station received a phone call regarding the sexual assault in Pitampura. On reaching the spot, police found that the victim was standing outside the spa centre with her husband. “She alleged that she was sexually assaulted by the spa centre’s manager and a client,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.
According to police, the victim was immediately taken to a nearby hospital for medical examination, and a session with a counsellor of the Delhi Commission for Women. The woman said that she had joined the ‘Ocean Spa Centre’ on July 30, and around 6pm on August 4, the two men came to the centre, and asked for sexual favours from her, but she refused.
{{/usCountry}}According to police, the victim was immediately taken to a nearby hospital for medical examination, and a session with a counsellor of the Delhi Commission for Women. The woman said that she had joined the ‘Ocean Spa Centre’ on July 30, and around 6pm on August 4, the two men came to the centre, and asked for sexual favours from her, but she refused.
{{/usCountry}}“Later, the manager offered the victim a cold drink mixed with additives, she felt dizzy and both the men raped her,” a senior police officer said.
Based on a complaint filed by the woman, a case was registered against the suspects under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) at the Maurya Enclave police station on August 4, and both of them were arrested from Delhi on August 5.
A separate case has also been registered against the Ocean Spa Centre under Section 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) of the IPC for violation of guidelines, and the spa centre’s owners Brij Gopal, 49, and Sandeep, 48, residents of Paschim Vihar and Moti Nagar, have been arrested. “The owners had obtained a licence from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), and the civic agency concerned has been instructed to cancel the licence and seal the premises at the earliest. Further action will be taken against them,” Rangnani said.
DCW chief Swati Maliwal issued a notice to police and the MCD over the matter, and said that she met the victim who allegedly told her that when she informed the owner of the spa, he tried to bribe her. “Many sex rackets are run in the guise of spa centre across Delhi. Most of these cases go unreported as the accused resort to threats and blackmail to silence the victims. This 22-year-old victim in this case was employed by the spa, which assured her that she will be asked to massage only women. However, to her shock and disbelief, she was raped by the manager and a client. Why are illegal spas allowed to operate in Delhi? Why do the authorities fail to check the prostitution rackets running in spas? Strict action must be taken in this matter,” she said.
