Delhi Horror: Driver and Helper Arrested After Woman Allegedly Gang Raped in Moving Bus, Political Storm Erupts
Delhi Police on Thursday confirmed the arrest of the vehicle’s driver and helper after a 30-year-old woman was allegedly gang-assaulted inside a moving bus in Outer Delhi’s Nangloi area.
The shocking incident has sparked a fierce political confrontation, with opposition leaders questioning the delay in making the case public and raising concerns over women’s safety in the national capital.
According to police officials, the woman, employed at a factory in Mangolpuri, boarded the bus around 12.30 am on Tuesday from the Rani Bagh area while returning home to Pitampura.
Police said the woman was standing near the B-Block bus stand in Saraswati Vihar when an orange-coloured bus carrying a Bihar registration number stopped nearby.
As per her complaint, she approached the conductor to ask for the time, but he allegedly pulled her into the bus.
Investigators said the bus, which was travelling from Delhi towards Bihar, then proceeded in the direction of Nangloi.
During the journey, the driver, identified as Umesh, and his helper Ramendra allegedly raped the woman inside the moving vehicle.
Officials stated that both accused, originally from Uttar Pradesh, were reportedly heading towards the Nangloi bus stand to pick up passengers at the time of the incident.
After the alleged assault, the woman was reportedly dropped in the Nangloi area after the bus had travelled nearly seven kilometres.
Police said a call regarding the incident was received at Nangloi police station at approximately 4.45 am.
The matter was later transferred to the jurisdiction of the Rani Bagh police station for further investigation.
Following the incident, the woman underwent a medical examination and later recorded her statement with the police. Authorities confirmed that both accused have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody.
The case soon turned into a major political flashpoint, with leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party attacking the administration and Delhi Police over the handling of the incident.
AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj questioned why details of the case were not disclosed immediately.
Addressing reporters, he asked how a bus could continue moving for hours through a densely populated area like Rani Bagh while such a serious crime was allegedly taking place before the victim was thrown out.
Former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal reacted strongly on social media, saying the country had failed to learn lessons from the 2012 Nirbhaya case.
Calling the incident a “stain on society,” he expressed concern over the recurring nature of such crimes in the capital.
Senior AAP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia also compared the case to the 2012 Delhi gang rape incident, alleging that women and girls continue to remain unsafe in public spaces, including buses and schools.
The remarks referred to the infamous 2012 Delhi gang assault case, widely known as the Nirbhaya case, in which a 23-year-old paramedic student was brutally assaulted inside a moving bus in South Delhi on the night of December 16, 2012.
The victim later died due to severe injuries at a hospital in Singapore, triggering nationwide outrage and widespread demands for stricter laws and improved safety measures for women.
