IIT Guwahati student arrested for allegedly raping batchmate inside campus; 4 others detained

A student of IIT Guwahati, Utsav Kadam has been arrested and four others questioned for sexually assaulting a girl student inside the campus on March 28, following an FIR lodged by the institute on Saturday.

Police sources said the girl is a batchmate of the accused. The incident occurred during Holi celebrations and the girl may have been drugged before she was allegedly raped, officials said.

However, they refused to share further details.

A statement issued by IIT Guwahati said the girl was rushed to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital after the incident and the victim's family was informed so they could file an FIR.

"The student and her guardians were informed that they could file an FIR, which they refused as they wanted the institute to take up the case. The Fact Finding Committee, constituted on March 29, submitted its report to the institute on April 2 evening and the institute filed an FIR," said the statement.

"Prima facie, it has been found that the student Utsav Kadam has committed an act that has been considered a serious criminal offence by the judiciary leading to his arrest on April 3 by the North Guwahati Police," said the statement.

Utsav has been suspended from the IIT with immediate effect from April 4 as recommended by the students' disciplinary committee. The four other students have been isolated from each other on campus and will be retained on campus for further police investigations as well as internal investigations, it said.

Many, however, questioned IIT-G's role during the medical examination of the girl at GMCH and the delay in filing the FIR. The institute has refuted the allegations saying all medical protocols were followed while dealing with the incident.