PIONEER NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
A rape accused who had been hiding on an island-like patch of land surrounded by floodwaters in Bihar was arrested by Uttarakhand’s Special Task Force (STF) after the team crossed a one-kilometre-wide river in a boat. The accused had been living in isolation in the flood-affected area to evade arrest since last August, after a rape case was registered against him in Dehradun’s Premnagar police station, the STF SSP Navneet Singh Bhullar said. He informed that the arrest was carried out during a joint operation by the STF and police.
The accused, Nitish Chaudhary (22), a resident of Vil Sirwar village under Mahishi police station in Saharsa district of Bihar, had a Rs 15,000 reward on his head. A permanent arrest warrant had also been issued against him by the Dehradun district court. Bhullar said that a team had been gathering technical and on-ground intelligence for over a month about the accused and found out where he had been hiding. He stated that in Bihar, where flood conditions prevail during this season, the team travelled in local attire, walked through difficult terrain and used boats to reach the location where the accused was hiding.
The SSP said that after sustained effort over four to five days, the accused was arrested from the flood-isolated region in the Kanaria police station area of Saharsa. Following his arrest, he was presented before the local court in Saharsa and brought to Premnagar police station on transit remand on Thursday. The SSP said that STF constable Riyaz Akhtar and surveillance expert Kishan Chandra played key roles in the operation, which is part of a Statewide drive to track and arrest wanted criminals involved in serious offences.
