Senior Punjab police official charged for raping law student at gunpoint

Amritsar: Punjab AIG (crime) Randhir Singh Uppal has been charged for allegedly raping a law student, a senior police official said Friday.

Based on a complaint lodged by the woman on September 18, Inspector General (crime and women) Vibhu Raj has been asked to probe the allegations levelled by the survivor against Uppal.

The assistant inspector general of police (AIG), however, refuted the allegations, terming them as baseless.

A case under Sections 376C (sexual intercourse by person in authority), 354D (stalking), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 498 (Enticing or taking away or detaining with criminal intent a married woman) of the IPC and sections 25, 54, 59 under the Arms Act was registered against Uppal, the official said.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Lakhbir Singh said according to the statement of the 26-year-old survivor, she was allegedly raped twice at gunpoint by the accused.

"The case has been registered at Cantonment police station and further investigations are underway," he said.

The student had filed her complaint on September 18 before the commissioner of police, Amritsar.

In her complaint, she alleged that AIG Uppal posted in Chandigarh had been calling her repeatedly for the last three months and forcing her to keep sexual relations with him, Lakhbir Singh said.

Notably, the complainant is married and is a mother of a six-year-old child.

She claimed that the AIG was known to her mother, the official said.

After receiving the complaint, the commissioner of police forwarded it to the Punjab Police Headquarters at Chandigarh for further investigation.

Later, a senior woman police officer of IG rank was asked to investigate the complaint.

The student, who had also accused the AIG of criminal intimidation, submitted some video clips to the police against Uppal.