A 19-year-old woman was kidnapped and gang raped by 22 people over a week in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh. Six of the assailants have been arrested and a hunt is on for the rest, the police said.     

The teen, a resident of Lalpur area in north Varanasi, had left home to visit a friend on March 29, which she often did without any trouble. But this time she failed to return home. Her family lodged a complaint with the police on April 4.

The same day, she was apparently drugged and released at the Pandeypur intersection by her kidnappers. She made her way somehow to a friend’s place that was nearby and was later taken home. She later disclosed the details of the ordeal to her father, who subsequently lodged a complaint with the police.

The assaults reportedly took place at a hookah bar, a hotel, a lodge, and a guest house in which various people were involved. The complaint, a copy of which is with NDTV,  mentions 22 people raped her.  

A case has been registered and the police is interrogating the accused men. Some of the arrested men are from Hukulganj and Lallapura areas, and they were taken into custody the same night. But the police are reluctant to give any detail since some of them could be minors.

Chandrakant Meena, a senior officer of the local police, said neither the victim nor her family had initially filed a complaint of sexual assault.  “The rape complaint was lodged only on April 6,” he told reporters.

Further investigations are in progress, he added. 

Delhi on Monday recorded its highest temperature of the season, with the mercury touching 40.2 degrees Celsius at Safdarjung, a departure of 5.1 degrees above normal. The rise in temperature is in line with the weather department’s heat wave forecast in the capital for this week. 

For the plains, a ‘heatwave’ is declared when the maximum temperature is over 40 degrees Celsius and at least 4.5 notches above normal.

“Delhi can see heatwave conditions in the next three days. A western disturbance will influence the Himalayan region from tomorrow night, and its effects will be seen in the Himalayas… Temperatures in the Himalayas will start to fall after tomorrow night and after three days in Punjab and Haryana…” IMD Scientist Dr Naresh Kumar told news agency ANI.

Heat Wave Forecast for Delhi

Heat Wave Conditions over Delhi at some places today (07.04.2025).#imd #india #WeatherUpdate #heatwave #Delhiheatwave @moesgoi @ndmaindia @DDNational @airnewsalerts pic.twitter.com/yDBnCyIgzf

— India Meteorological Department (@Indiametdept) April 7, 2025

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the weather in Delhi and NCR has shown little change in the past 24 hours, with no significant variations in minimum temperatures and a slight rise in maximum temperatures. The maximum temperature recorded in most areas of Delhi has been between 38 to 39 degrees Celsius, while the minimum temperature ranged between 19 to 23 degrees Celsius.

While the minimum temperatures are near normal, the maximum temperatures have been above normal by 2-4 degrees Celsius in several parts of the region, said the weather office.
 

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