In Rajasthan’s Ajmer district, a distressing case of gang rape and extortion involving an 11th-class girl has come to light. The main accused, Irfan, used Instagram to lure the victim into a false friendship through one of her acquaintances. After gaining her trust, Irfan and his accomplices not only gang-raped the minor but also began to harass her by threatening to make a video of the assault viral. To add to the victim’s ordeal, Irfan extorted Rs 5 lakh from her and later demanded an additional Rs 10 lakh.
In response to this heinous crime, the Rajasthan Police took swift action, arresting four other accused on June 3, for their involvement in the gang rape and blackmail of the minor girl. So far, the police have arrested six suspects identified as Irfan, Arbaz, Aslam, Razzak, Mubarak Khan, and Imran Khan, all aged between 19 to 23 years.
The victim, a class 11 student, was reportedly introduced to the main accused, Irfan, by one of her friends on Instagram. Under the guise of friendship, Irfan manipulated her trust, photoshopped her pictures, and began to blackmail her.
Arvind Charan, the police station in charge, confirmed that both the accused have been remanded and their call details and mobile phones are being examined as part of the investigation. The Ajmer Range IG, Lata Manoj Kumar, has also formed a special investigation team (SIT) to delve deeper into the case.
According to police sources, there is suspicion that the accused might be part of a larger gang that targets school and college-going girls, trapping them in similar schemes of blackmail and assault. The victim’s father lodged an FIR against Irfan and Arbaaz, along with six others, accusing them of gang-raping and blackmailing his daughter. The police have registered a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act on May 30.
The victim’s ordeal began in October 2023 when her friend introduced her to Irfan on Instagram. Trusting her friend’s judgment, the girl befriended Irfan, eventually sharing her Instagram user ID and password at his request. Soon after, Irfan began to blackmail her using photoshopped images, also demanding Rs 5 lakh. Scared and intimidated, the girl complied with his demands, secretly withdrawing money from her home to pay him off.
The victim’s father reported the incident to the police, stating that his daughter became friends with another girl at a coaching centre in October 2023. This friend introduced the victim to Irfan on Instagram, which led to the subsequent events. When the family noticed money missing from their home, the victim finally revealed her ordeal to her family, leading to the police complaint.
In March 2024, when Irfan came to collect more money, his accomplice Arbaaz was also present. The duo called the girl to a secluded location where other members of the gang were waiting. After taking the money, Irfan and his associates gang-raped the girl and then demanded an additional Rs 10 lakh.
The police are now investigating the possibility of more victims, as the accused have been seen with other school and college girls. Raids are being conducted to arrest other members of the gang and gather more information about potential victims. The police are also looking into the role of the friend who introduced the victim to the accused.
In 1992, Ajmer was shaken by a deeply disturbing scandal that exposed a network of exploitation and blackmail targeting young girls, including school and college students. The scandal came to light after the local newspaper ‘Navjyoti’ published explicit images and reported on the horrifying situation, revealing how local gangs were coercing and victimising these young women.
The scandal began when Farooq Chishti, the president of the Ajmer Youth Congress, groomed a female student from Sophia Senior Secondary School, eventually raping her. He took compromising photographs of the minor and used them to blackmail her into introducing him to other girls, who were subsequently subjected to the same horrific treatment.
Farooq Chishti was not alone in his crimes; Nafis Chishti, the vice-president, and Anwar Chishti, the joint secretary of the city Congress unit, were also implicated. Disturbingly, several of the accused were Khadims, or caretakers, of the Ajmer Dargah, a prominent religious site.
The investigation led to charges against 18 men, and the town was gripped by tension for several days. The majority of the accused were Muslim, many from families of Khadims, and their victims were predominantly young Hindu girls.
The aftermath of the scandal was marked by a disturbing display of political influence and administrative negligence. There were widespread allegations that the case was deliberately suppressed, leading to many witnesses and victims turning hostile. Threats and further blackmail were used to silence those who might speak out, compounding the tragedy with additional layers of intimidation and fear. The social stigma attached to the victims also played a significant role in their reluctance to come forward. The scandal not only exposed the vulnerabilities of the young girls but also the systemic failures that allowed such heinous crimes to occur and remain largely unpunished.
