Surat gang-rape accused dies in police custody

Surat: One of the two men arrested for allegedly raping a teenage girl in Gujarat’s Surat district died in a hospital here after he complained of breathing difficulty in police custody on Thursday, an official said.

Shivshankar Chaurasia (45), named in murder and theft cases in the past, and Munna Paswan (40) were arrested on Wednesday for the alleged sexual assault on the minor.

“I am informed that Chaurasia had complained of difficulty in breathing at around 2.00 pm and was rushed to a health centre in the Kamrej area. He was then referred to the new civil hospital, where he died during treatment,” said Surat District Superintendent of Police Hitesh Joysar.

Police will produce Paswan before a court in the evening seeking his remand, he said.

According to the police, Paswan, Chaurasia and a third person, who is yet to be nabbed, allegedly raped a 17-year-old girl in Mangrol taluka on Tuesday night.

The teenager had gone to the Kim village to meet friends after attending her coaching class. She and her male friend were sitting in a deserted place on their way to a petrol pump along the highway near Mota Borsara village when three men approached them, police said.

While her friend escaped, the trio raped the minor before fleeing with her and her friend's mobile phones. After being alerted, police registered a case for gang rape and other charges under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Paswan and Chaurasia were nabbed from a nearby location on Wednesday evening and cops had to open fire while taking the duo into custody, police had said in a release.

Police said several cases had been registered against the two in areas like Ankleshwar, Kadodara, Amirgadh and Karjan.

Chaurasia was booked in a murder case in 2017 in Ankleshwar and for theft in 2023 in Karjan. This year, he was booked under the Arms Act by the Amirgadh police station of Banaskantha.