Cops suspect Pune techie was raped

Naina Abhijit Pujari, the 28-year-old techie who was found murdered in Pune on October 8, may have been gang-raped by the suspects in the case, the police said on Friday. Pujari was found dead in Rajgurunagar, about 35 km from Pune, off the Pune-Nashik highway with her head smashed with a stone. The police said she was strangulated with her dupatta and that her head was smashed to mislead investigators.

The four suspects are three cab drivers and a security guard who works at Synechron, the IT company where Pujari was a senior software developer. Three of the suspects,
including the guard, have been arrested.

“We suspect that she may have been gang-raped but are still awaiting the post mortem report,” said additional commissioner of police (crime) Anant Shinde, who added that the police have registered cases of murder and kidnapping against the suspects.

One of the drivers, Yogesh Ashok Raut, 24, owns a vehicle attached to Wings Travels, one of the largest fleet operators in Pune. The security guard, Rajesh Pandurang Chowdhari alias Raju, was on the payroll of Group4 Security Services. Tanveer Saulat, managing director (India operations), Synechron, said Pujari had missed the regular shuttle service at 7.30pm on October 8. “She didn’t wait for the next service (scheduled at 8.15pm) and walked out of the company premises,” Saulat said.

Shinde said Pujari may have taken a cab from outside the premises. The police also said that Rs61,000 had been withdrawn from separate ATMs using her debit card.
Pujari’s husband Abhijit said: “The suspects should be given the maximum punishment. This should not happen with anyone else.”