A 29-year-old Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) jawan was arrested on Saturday in Odisha’s Kendujhar district after a 22-year-old college student alleged that he took her from a bus and raped her inside a hotel. Police said a second man who allegedly assisted him is still absconding.
The accused has been identified as Rashmi Ranjan Sethi of Mundukati village under Hatadihi block. Reports quoting police said he is posted as a CISF jawan in Tamil Nadu. The student, a Plus-III pupil of Shalapada Women’s College, and the accused are from neighbouring villages and knew each other.
According to the complaint, the incident occurred on Thursday morning, 1 October 2026. The student had travelled with her father on a motorcycle and boarded a bus for college. Police said the accused called her off the bus and took her to a hotel near Salabani Chhak, also referred to as Salabani Square or Salabani Chowk, where she alleged he raped her.
Her mother, quoted by Argus News, gave a more specific account. She said her husband had dropped their daughter near the bus, after which Sethi allegedly pulled her in front of the Senapati bus and forcibly took her to a nearby hotel. She named another person, Dhani, as having assisted in taking her daughter. She further said her daughter pleaded with the hotel manager, after which her husband was informed and the student was brought home. The Times of India reported that the student informed her family by phone and that her father, accompanied by another villager, reached the hotel and took her home.
The family later lodged a written complaint at Soso police station. Police registered Case No. 182/26 and began an investigation. The student underwent a medical examination on Saturday.
Anandapur Sub-Divisional Police Officer Kamal Kumar Panda said the prime accused had been arrested and that efforts were under way to nab the second accused. Earlier reports on Saturday had described Sethi as detained for questioning; subsequent reports confirmed his arrest. He is being interrogated.
Police have not publicly stated the penal sections invoked. The allegations remain under investigation, and the second accused has not been arrested. No official statement from CISF on departmental action had been reported as of Sunday.
