Woman used to smile at me, says rape case accused

Ahmedabad: The Vikas Gruh rape accused, 56-year-old Amrut Patel, was taken by Paldi police to Civil Hospital for a potency test. Police said Patel was taken for the test in view of his age and the test results were positive. Patel is a clerk at the school on the premises of the Vikas Gruh (shelter home).

Police said that along with DNA test, the potency test result will be used as evidence against Patel. A police officer, who is part of the investigation in the case, said that during preliminary questioning, Patel had claimed that the speech and hearing-impaired woman used to smile at him whenever he went to mark his presence at the biometric machine.

“He took this as a sign that the 30-year-old woman was interested and began with molestation. Later, he had sex with her twice at vacant quarters on the campus. For the past three months, he claims to have had no communication with the woman,“ said the police officer.

The city police, meanwhile, have taken a serious view of the rape at the Vikas Gruh and have asked the officials of the shelter home to take more safety measures, including installation of CCTV and a fence on the home's boundary wall.

The officials of the shelter home had reported the rape after the woman was found pregnant during a medical check-up. The woman had been living at the home for over two years.

Subsequently, an internal investigation had pointed at Amrut Patel as the culprit. Paldi police arrested Patel on rape charges late on Friday night from near his residence.

Vidhi Chaudhari, DCP Zone VII, told TOI that city police had a meeting over the incident with officials of the shelter home and the social justice department.

“Officials of the shelter home have given an oral assurance that the suggested security measures would be implemented within 30 days. Being an organization that works for women, certain checks are necessary,“ Chaudhari said.

Earlier, too, the shelter home had been asked to install a CCTV camera when a group of girls had managed to flee from there. The rape incident has again landed the home in controversy.