A minor girl, allegedly gang-raped in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region, has given birth to a baby, the state police confirmed on Saturday. According to the cops, the alleged victim revealed after getting pregnant and delivering the baby that she was "forced into sexual acts" by a friend.
The rape-accused has been arrested and will be prosecuted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the police added.
"A minor girl was allegedly gang-raped in Bastar, Chhattisgarh. She was a boy's friend who vowed marriage and had physical relations. He forced her into sexual acts with friends. She got pregnant and revealed the ordeal after delivery. The accused has been arrested and will be prosecuted under POCSO," news agency ANI quoted the Assistant Superintendent (ASP) of Bastar.
The brazen instances of minors being gang-raped in Chhattisgarh are something to note when looking at the state's crime index. Merely five days ago, Chhattisgarh Police had confirmed that another minor, a 19-year-old girl, was abducted and gang-raped allegedly by three men in the state's Jashpur district. The victim, in that case, was kidnapped from her own home the moment her parents went out following a power outage.
"She and her family members were watching television at a kin's house, After a power outage, her family members returned home but the teen went missing. She was found unconscious next morning gagged and bound by her own clothes," Jashpur Superintendent of Police Balaji Rao had said while elaborating on the case.
Notably, a dispute broke out not too long ago when a BJP MP from Chhattisgarh stoked controversy by reportedly referring to the alleged gangrape and death of a 19-year-old Dalit woman in Hathras as a "banavat" (fake) incident, drawing flak from the ruling Congress.
Mohan Mandavi, who represents the Kanker seat, had made these remarks during a protest held last week by his party in Kondagaon district over the alleged gangrape and suicide by an 18-year-old tribal woman in Dhanora area.
"If there will a CBI investigation (into Dhanora case), similar incidents will be unearthed in every four to five villages (of Bastar in Chhhattisgarh)...Those who fabricate the false story of Hathras. No atrocity had occurred there.
".....'use banawati banakar, use atyachar banakar' (by making up the Hathras incident), senior Congress leaders have been visiting there where nothing has happened," Mandavi had said while addressing a gathering, a video of which has been doing rounds of social media.
(With inputs from agencies)
