Out on Picnic, Two Army Officers Assaulted, Robbed in MP, Woman Friend Gang-Raped

Indore: In a disturbing incident, two young trainee army officers and their two female friends were attacked by a group of miscreants in the early hours of Wednesday and one of the women was raped during the assault, near Mhow in Madhya Pradesh 's Indore district, police said. 

The attackers, initially appearing to have the intention of robbery, brutally assaulted the officers and gang-raped one of the women.

Lokendra Singh Hirore, in-charge of the Badgonda Police Station, reported that the officers, aged 23 and 24, were undergoing a Young Officers (YO) course at the Infantry School in Mhow Cantonment. They had gone out on a picnic with their female friends on Tuesday, he informed further. 

Around 2 AM on Wednesday, seven unidentified men approached their picnic spot on the Mhow-Mandleshwar road. They began attacking one of the officers, who was sitting in a car, and also assaulted the women.

The second officer, who was away from the car at the time, managed to alert his superiors, leading to the police arriving at the scene. However, the attackers fled when they saw the police, Hirore stated further. 

The victims were taken to Mhow Civil Hospital for medical examination around 6:30 a.m., where doctors found signs of physical injuries on the officers, according to Hirore.

During the examination, it was confirmed that one of the women had been raped by the assailants.

Speaking to reporters, Indore Rural Superintendent of Police, Hitika Vasal, stated, "A case has been registered under various sections related to looting, dacoity, rape, and the Arms Act."  Vasal further added that personnel from four police stations have been deployed in a manhunt for the attackers.