Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (KD/NR)

Mangalore, Sep 1: A plea made by two persons accused of attempting to rape a German national sometime back in a hotel at Deralakatte was rejected by the principal district and session judge H M Bharatesh here on Friday, August 31.

Bharatesh directed them to face the trail and posted the case for recording the statement of the victim, a medical student from Dresden to September 5. K K Seetharama, principal public prosecutor stated that the accused Mohammed Ashraf a resident of Kudroli, and Adbul Jaleel, a resident of Kakke Majalu near Konaje, had stealthly gained entry into the hotel room where the student was staying in the early hours of the morning that fateful day.

However when they had attempted to rape her she managed to free herself and shouted for help which brought other people running to her rescue.

The defense council had appealed to the court to discharge the case as one of molestation only, and hence requested the said case to be tried before a magisterial court. The prosecution however vehemently opposed this position of the defendant lawyer stating that the accused being a medical student was fully aware of his action of molestation and was attempting to rape. 

The prosecution argued that Penzer, the victim who had come to the city as part of the student exchange programme had to leave for Germany on September 5 and the petition by the defence to revert the case to a magisterial court would delay the proceedings, he pointed out. And therefore, the case would not stand once she leaves the country, the prosecutor alleged. The judge in his wisdom upheld this argument and directed the State to frame charges against the accused with immediate effect.