A45-year-old woman has been grievously injured after four men allegedly raped her and inserted an iron rod into her private parts in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district, police said on Monday. The incident took place on Saturday night following which the woman has been undergoing treatment in a hospital in neighbouring Rewa district, Amiliya police station in-charge Deepak Baghel said.

The four accused have been detained, he said. State Home Minister Narottam Mishra told reporters in Bhopal on Monday that no culprit will be spared.

A speedy trial will be conducted into the case and the accused will be punished, he said. According to the police official, the woman's husband died about four years back and she was living with her two children and 40-year-old sister in a shanty on a hillock near Hardi village, about 60 km from the district headquarters.

She ran a shop from her shanty to earn her livelihood, the official said. Around 10 pm on Saturday, four men approached her and asked for water.

When the woman told them that she did not have water, the accused broke into the home. They then allegedly raped her and inserted an iron rod into her private parts, the official said quoting the victim's complaint. The woman subsequently fainted due to excessive bleeding, he said, adding that her two sons, aged 16 and 18, were not at home at the time of the incident.

Her sister could not call anyone for help at that time as their house is located in a desolate place, the police official said. Later, the woman's sister called an auto-rickshaw from Hardi village and took her to Amiliya police station, from where she was taken to Sidhi district hospital, he said.

The woman was initially admitted to the district hospital and later referred to a medical facility in Rewa for treatment as her bleeding continued, he said. The police detained the four accused on Sunday and were questioning them. The accused belong to the same village as the woman, the official said. Based on the complaint, a case has been registered against the accused under Indian Penal Code Sections 376 (rape), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons), 452 (house-trespass after preparation for hurt, assault or wrongful restraint) and 34 (common intention), he said.

The victim's condition is improving, he said.