Panipat, October 9: Two of the six men booked for the gang rape of three women and the murder of another here have allegedly consumed poison, leading to the death of one of them, police here said on Monday. The gang rape took place on September 20 in a village farmhouse here. The complainant in the case said four masked men carrying weapons forced their way into the house late in the night. Before raping the three women labourers, the accused used ropes to tie up their family members and also robbed cash and jewellery, police said earlier.

It is suspected the same gang was involved in the murder of a woman on the same night about a kilometre away from the spot where the gang rape was committed. On Sunday, Jyoti, one of the accused allegedly died by consuming poison at Baraut in Uttar Pradesh. His body was found lying near the fields, Inspector Ankit Nandal of Panipat police said on Monday. Haryana Rape Case: NCW Seeks Report Within Three Days on Gang Rape of Three Women by Armed Men in Front of Family Members in Panipat.

A day earlier, another accused Rajeev alias Raju also consumed poison on Saturday. He is currently being treated in a hospital in Meerut, Nandal said. A three-member SIT (special investigation team) headed by Deputy Superintendent of Police (Panipat) Krishan Kumar was formed to investigate the gang rape and murder cases that took place on September 20.

Four men -- Jyoti, Rajeev, Jai Bhagwan and Narender -- were identified as the main accused, while two were their accomplices, Nandal said. The accused were booked for the farmhouse incident under Sections 376D (gang rape), 342 (punishment for wrongful confinement), 392 (robbery), 452 (house trespassing) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code and relevant provisions of the Arms Act, the police said. Haryana Horror: Armed Men Barge Into House, Gang-Rape Three Women in Front of Family Members in Panipat.

A separate case was lodged for the woman's alleged murder under Sections 392 (robbery), 394 (voluntary causing hurt for robbery), 460 (death or grievous hurt caused by one of the persons jointly concerned in house-breaking) and the Arms Act, they added. Jai Bhagwan was nabbed on October 3 while another accused Narender was arrested on October 7, Nandal said.