Class 9 Student Of State-Run Residential School Gives Birth, Police File Case Of Rape

A Class 9 girl of a state-run residential school was eight months pregnant when she gave birth to a newborn boy at a hospital in Karnataka's Chikkaballapura, the police said and filed a case of rape under the Indian Penal Code and POCSO, as reported by PTI.

In the Tumakuru district of the state, the 14-year-old girl was residing in the hostel of a state-run residential school. The issue was discovered when she complained of stomach pain while arriving at her Bagepalli taluk house. Following a scan, the physicians at the hospital where her parents had brought her discovered she was pregnant, according to the police.

According to the officials, the hostel warden has been suspended by the Tumakuru district government.

POCSO complaint filed

According to him, the hospital administration notified the police, who then filed a complaint in accordance with the Protection of Children Against Sexual Offenses Act and section 376 of the IPC, which deals with rape.

The Child Welfare Committee provided the girl with counseling. She told them during counseling that she became pregnant with a boy—her senior year of high school. However, the child denied it when questioned, according to the officer.

"Although we have filed a case in this regard, no arrests have yet been made in relation to the incident. There is silence from the girl's parents. They're receiving counseling. The girl's claims are inconsistent with herself. There was another boy whose name she stated, a senior in school. So, we are questioning all of them to find out who is responsible," the officer stated.

The student was brought to the hospital, and on January 9, following a check-up and appropriate tests, the doctors delivered the baby. Although the girl was underweight, a senior police official stated that she and her child were stable.

(With inputs from PTI)