College lecturer held for raping, sodomizing housemaid

RAJKOT: A 33-year-old lecturer of a reputed college in the city was arrested for allegedly raping and sodomizing his housemaid while his parents were also held for helping him in the crime.
Rakshit Raiyani, who teaches at Christ College, is accused of raping and sodomizing the woman at his house. The complaint against Raiyani comes close on the heels of his wife Poonam sitting on a dharna at chief minister Vijay Rupani’s bungalow alleging that her husband was a womaniser and tortured her.

Police inspector of Mahila Police station told TOI: “The rape survivor had signed a service contract with Raiyani’s mother Hina to work as a maid at their house. She alleged that Raiyani raped and sodomized her several times. His parents are accused of forcing her to go into his room and submit herself to him. His father Parshottam also assaulted her sexually.”

Police said that 24-year-old rape survivor and Raiyani’s family followed the same sect and attended religious sermons regularly.

The survivor told police that Raiyani had approached her on January 10 saying that his family needs a “cultured” and “religious” house maid to take care of his parents as his wife was going to her parents house for a long time. He offered her Rs 25,000 per month as salary.

The woman signed a service cum live-in contract with his mother Hina and she started living their house in Silver Park-4 on Amin Marg.

In her complain, the woman alleged, “One day Rakshit took me in his room and started making sexual advances. He said that he was going to divorce his wife and would marry me. Despite my stiff resistance, he closed the door and raped me.”

She informed Hina about rape next day but she allegedly paid no heed. She also asked him to follow Raiyani’s orders and that he would marry her once he and Poonam get divorced. They also threatened to kill her if she told anyone about the rape.

The woman alleged that she was living under constant fear and Raiyani raped and sodomized her every night.

On March 1, she was taken to some religious place in Mandvi in Kutch where he committed the crime again. She alleged that on March 8, his father grabbed her hand and started abusing verbally and then physically. She kicked him and closed the door from outside and returned to Jamnagar where her parents lived. She narrated the trauma to o her parents who helped her to lodge a police complain in Rajkot.

Earlier, Raiyani was booked for domestic violence after his wife’s allegations. Poonam was his second wife after his first marriage ended in divorce.