Balipatna: In a shocking incident, a nine-year-old girl was allegedly raped by her neighbour Friday at around 1.00pm at a village under Balipatna police limits on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar.
The accused has been booked under POCSO Act, an official in the station said Saturday. The accused was identified as Biswajit Sethi of the same village.
According to police sources, the rape survivor had gone to take bath in a tubewell near her house. Taking advantage of the situation, the youth forcibly kidnapped the girl and took her to a secluded place where he allegedly outraged her modesty.
Hearing the girl’s screams, a few villagers rushed to the spot and rescued her. The minor victim was immediately admitted to Balipatna Community Health Centre (CHC) for primary treatment. She was then shifted to Capital Hospital in Bhubaneswar after her condition deteriorated.
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The girl’s father lodged an FIR at Balipatna station Friday night, acting on which police launched a manhunt and nabbed the accused from the capital city where he was hiding after committing the crime.
“The accused is a daily wager and a close acquaintance of the victim. He used to visit the girl’s house very often. The incident took place when the minor girl was taking bath at a village tubewell. However, the survivor managed to flee from the clutches of the accused youth and narrated about her ordeal before her family,” the official stated.
Police have registered a case under Sections 376(2)(M), 376(A)(B) of IPC and 6 of POCSO Act in this connection and nabbed the accused following raids, Balipatna PS IIC Krupasindhu Barad expressed.
The key accused Biswajit is now being quizzed by Balipatna police to ascertain if there is involvement of any other person(s) in the heinous crime.
A detailed probe is underway, the IIC Barad informed.
PNN