A 45-year-old woman, who was bathing in the Ganga in Patna district in Bihar, was allegedly dragged out and gangraped by two men on Monday.
The accused men, Shivpujan Mahto and Vishal, have been arrested, NDTV reported.
The police said the accused had filmed the crime and circulated the video on Whatsapp. In the video, the news channel reported, the woman is heard telling the men that she was observing a fast for her children and begs them to take into account the sanctity of the river.
Hindustan Times reported that she had referred to the Ganga as her mother in the video.
Locals have accused the police of refusing to register an FIR when the woman went to file complaint. Instead, the police acted only when the video went viral. News 18 reported that the woman did not file a complaint.
Mahto, a 45-year-old bus driver, was the one who allegedly dragged her out of the river. Vishal, 28, who is unemployed, filmed and circulated the video on Whatsapp.
Mahto had reportedly a minor girl, who was accompanying him, HT reported. She too was rescued.
A minor girl, whom he had lured into accompanying him, was also rescued, the police said.
A senior police official, Anand Kumar, toldThe Times of India that the woman, a mother to three children, whose husband works in Delhi, had suppressed the crime until the police noticed the viral video.
Kumar said that the police had to plead with the woman to file a complaint. "It was only after persuading her for a long time that she became ready to give her statement after which she recorded her statement before the police against the accused persons," he told TOI.
The police has also recovered the cellphone from which the crime was filmed and circulated.