Kopardi gangrape case: Police files chargesheet against three prime accused

Representational image. AFP[/caption]Accused Pappu alias Jitendra Shinde, Santosh G Bhaval and Nitin G Bhailume were arrested within hours of the crime and charged under Sections 376 (A) and 302 of the Indian Penal Code, pertaining to rape and murder, besides other sections of relevant laws.It marked the end of the 86-day police investigation into the rape and murder of the 15-year-old girl.Criminal lawyer Ujjwal Nikam has been appointed the Special Public Prosecutor in the case to be tried before a fast-track court.The chargesheet running into around 350 pages named around 70 witnesses, including family members and other villagers.The crime, which was equated with the Nirbhaya case of Delhi in view of the grisly brutality involved, happened on 13 July evening at Kopardi village in Ahmednagar district.The girl went missing for a few hours, after which her mutilated, blood-splattered body was found under a tree in a field.The crime sent shock waves through social and political circles and led to a ruckus in the Maharashtra legislature for two days during its monsoon session in July.The opposition Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party targeted the state's Bharatiya Janata Party-Shiv Sena government both within the legislature and outside.Hundreds of villagers put up roadblocks in Kopardi and surrounding villages and took out processions to demand justice for the victim and her family.The state government had announced a compensation of Rs 500,000 to the victim's family under the Manodhairya Scheme.