Two arrested for raping 40-year-old woman on suburban train parked in Tambaram yard

CHENNAI: Two persons were arrested for allegedly raping a 40-year-old woman in a suburban train parked in Tambaram railway yard during the wee hours of Saturday.

A government railway police (GRP) officer said that the woman, who sells fruits and vegetables on trains, in her complaint said that she boarded the Chennai Beach - Chengalpattu EMU (electric multiple unit) at Pallavaram station around 11.30 pm on Friday.  

However, she, who confirmed to the police that she was drunk on the night, missed her destination and fell asleep on the train floor till it completed its trip and reached the yard around 1 am.

She said she woke up when two men were attempting rape on her, police said, adding that the crime was allegedly committed despite several attempts of her to stop them.    

The woman also claimed that the two men threatened to brand her as a thief and get her arrested if she reported the incident anywhere, police said.

Around 4.30 am, the sources said, the woman, seemingly exhausted, walked into the Tambaram government railway police station from the yard, around 500 metres away, and filed a complaint.

A case was registered and an investigation was launched.

A senior official said that the roster chart of railway staff was checked and it was learned that contract workers K Suresh (31) and B Abdul Ajees (30) were on cleaning duty during the time.

As their identity matched with the details shared by the woman, the duo was arrested under sections IPC section 376 (punishment for rape) and 506 (1) (punishment for criminal intimidation).  

The duo was produced before a court and remanded in judicial custody on Saturday.

The woman, a resident of Paranur, near Chengalpattu, has two children, police said, adding that she has not been living with her husband.