Panaji, Jun 29 (IANS): The Goa Police on Saturday ordered the suspension of two police constables who were escorting Ramchandra Yellappa, an undertrial who is facing trial for the rape of a British national last year, when he escaped from their custody on Friday.

Ramdas Gawas, a police constable attached to the Valpoi police station in North Goa and Rama Patel who was posted with the India Reserve Battalion, were suspended pending an enquiry, a police spokesperson said on Saturday.

Yellappa, 30, who hails from Tamil Nadu, was being escorted to a trial court for a hearing on Friday, when he escaped from the toilet of the court complex, forcing the police to launch a manhunt to trace him. Yellappa is still at large.

The accused is facing trial for raping and robbing a 48-year-old British woman near the Canacona railway station in South Goa district in the early hours of December 20.

The crime which was committed near a public road had created a furore in Goa, with questions being asked of the state government, vis-a-vis the issue of safety of women in the coastal state, especially women tourists.