(MENAFN- Arab Times) Indian police have arrested a suspect in connection with the rape of an elderly nun, a senior officer said Thursday, their first breakthrough in a case that has shocked the country.
Investigators traced Mohammed Salim Shaikh to the western city of Mumbai and detained him on Wednesday night, district superintendent Arnab Ghosh told AFP. Police also arrested Gopal Sarkar on suspicion of harbouring Shaikh and his alleged accomplices, Gosh said.
The nun, who is in her 70s, needed surgery after she was attacked earlier this month when a gang of robbers broke into the convent school in the eastern state of West Bengal where she lived. Police in the state capital Kolkata identified four of the six robbers through CCTV footage and had detained eight people for questioning.
But no arrests were made until Wednesday and authorities in Kolkata had faced criticism over the pace of progress in the investigation.
Last week, the West Bengal government said it was handing over the case to the country's top investigators after coming under fire over the lack of arrests. The assault was the latest in a string of high-profile rapes in India and added to the fears of the country's Christian minority following a spate of attacks on churches.
Detectives have posted a reward of 100,000 rupees ($1,600) for any leads on the suspects. Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi has promised a crackdown on religious violence and has said he was deeply concerned about the attack on the nun. Police have launched a gang-rape inquiry, although officers say only one person sexually assaulted the nun. Sheikh appeared in court in Kolkata on Thursday and was remanded in custody for two weeks.
The nun, in her 70s, was hospitalized in serious condition. Christian leaders say a series of attacks on churches since Prime Minister Narendra Modi's right-wing Hindu government came to power in May have created a sense of fear in the community. Police also are looking for other suspects who attacked the Convent of Jesus and Mary School in West Bengal state, ransacked the chapel, destroyed religious items and stole cash.
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