7 Accused Booked For Blackmailing, Raping Gujarat College Student For 16 Months
In a shocking incident of sexual exploitation, a 20-yr-old college student from Palanpur in Gujarat was allegedly raped by seven men over a period of 16 months after she was blackmailed with an obscene video. "Defendant then used the video to extort the victim into acts against the victims will, in a horrific cycle of abuse".
How It Started
As per the First Information Report (FIR) lodged on March 11, 2025, the victim, a first-year college student, met one of the accused, Vishal Chaudhary, via Instagram in November 2023. He won her trust, and lured her into breakfast at a hotel, where he would actually spill food on her dress. Pretending to help her clean up, he went with her to a hotel room.
Chaudhary allegedly recorded an explicit video of her without her consent while she was changing in the bathroom. He threatened to post the video online unless she met his demands, using it as blackmail.
Months of Abuse and Exploitation
The complainant was subjected to repeated blackmail and sexual assaults at different locations. As time went on, Chaudhary brought six more men into the scheme, and they, too, raped her while keeping her under constant intimidation. That was how her life went until one day she finally found the courage to approach the authorities.
Response and Investigation by Police
Based on the complaint from the victim, the Palanpur taluka police registered a case against the accused under the sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) pertaining to rape and criminal intimidation. The accused were also charged under Section 67 of Information Technology Act, 2000 (which deals with transmission of obscene material in electronic-form).
The police are probing the case and launched a manhunt to arrest the accused persons. New digital blackmail cases have led authorities to warn students and young women to remain vigilant about online relationships and to not be hesitant about reporting any kind of digital blackmail.
Rising Concerns Over Digital Exploitation
This case serves as another reminder of the dangers of cyber exploitation and the growing list of sexual crimes made possible by social media presence. Experts say strict awareness of digital safety and amendments of laws to punish such offences should be performed.
Officials have promised the survivor they'll get all the help they need and are doing their best to make sure the wrongdoer faces consequences. This awful event shows how we need to tackle sex crimes and online wrongdoing in our tech-driven world.
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