Sex Assault, Blackmail: Bhopal Case Draws Parallels To 1992 Ajmer Scandal

Sexual assault of female college students, filming of acts, drugging victims, blackmail and religious conversion - chilling details emerging from Bhopal hold striking similarities to the 1992 Ajmer sex scandal, which had impacted as many as 100 young schoolgirls and uprooted families.

What Is The Bhopal Sexual Assault Case?

The accused individuals were part of a gang led by an individual identified as Farhan Khan, which systematically preyed on college girls. The gang's modus operandi came to light when two sisters pursuing B Tech at a Bhopal college approached the police with harrowing accounts. While the elder sister was raped in 2022 at a house in Jahangirabad. The younger sister was later sexually assaulted under threats. Both were later pressured for marriage and religious conversion, their resistance met with more threats of defamation.

Further, the younger sister was introduced by Farhan to his associate Adil Khan, who molested and eventually raped her. Videos of the incident were were used for further blackmail and sexual assault, often carried out while the girl was intoxicated forcefully. On seizing Farhan's phone, police found obscene videos, many of the two sisters.

Gruesome details emerged from videos found on Farhan's phone, including burning a victim with a cigarette. Police said Farhan saved the videos in specific folders on his phone, and believe he had even brainwashed several victims to wear religious clothing and observe fasts. Some victims alleged being raped inside moving vehicles while being threatened by weapons, while others claimed being drugged to break resistance.

Another main accused Sahil Khan, a native of Madhya Pradesh's Panna, started offering dance classes in Bhopal. The first-year college dropout allegedly targeted poor girls who had moved from villages to the city for education. After taking them to lounges and pubs, he would take them to a rented room, where his first victim was a girl from Betul. After spiking her cold drink with intoxicants, he sexually assaulted her and secretly filmed the act. The video was then used by Sahil to carry out repeated sexual exploitation, sometimes also involving Farhan.

No videos of alleged assault by Sahil were found on his phone, which has been sent to forensic analysis.

Another accused is Ali Khan, who also raped a colleges student and recorded the act, a mechanic Saad who facilitated the movement of girls for Rs 500-700 per trip, and Abrar and Nabeel.

Earlier this week, the police registered three FIRs pertaining to the case, charging the accused under sections relating to rape, kidnapping, Freedom of Religion Act, and POCSO Act. During interrogation, Farhan allegedly showed no remorse for his actions. The group of accused in Bhopal is suspected to have targeted women in Indore too, as per police sources.

While Farhan, Sahil and Saad have arrested, Ali, Abrar and Nabeel are on the run.

What Happened In Ajmer In 1992?

In the 1992 Ajmer case, six men were sentenced to life imprisonment by a POCSO court 32 years later, for the gangrape and blackmailing of as many as 100 school girls. Previously, nine others were jailed for life in the same case and four were acquitted by the high court. The accused, including the influential Chishty duo of Farooq and Nafis, associated with the Ajmer Sharif Dargah, and their associates. A local photo lab printed and circulated nude pictures of the victims.

When the case came to light, religious tensions flared in Ajmer, leading to city-wide shutdowns. For over 30 years, the constant summons to court, often accompanied by policemen arriving at their doorstep, became a painful reminder of the ordeal for the victims. In 2023, a Hindi film named Ajmer 92 was made on the case.

Trending News