BHOPAL: A 55-year-old Katha Vachak (religious preacher) was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly sexually assaulting/raping three teenage Dalit sisters in Satna district.
The Katha Vachak identified as Narayan Swarup Tripathi was arrested in Maihar Dehat (Nadan) police station area after being booked for sexual assault/rape of the three teenage sisters aged 17, 15 and 14 years inside their house.
The shocking incident happened on Monday, when the parents of the three teenage girls requested the religious preacher to perform rituals for addressing the Kal Sarp Dosh in their horoscopes.
Shockingly, once inside their house, the religious preacher called the three sisters one by one in a room in the name of performing rituals and then allegedly sexually assaulted them.
As the three siblings’ labourer father was out of town, the matter came to light when he returned home on Monday night.
The three sisters along with parents subsequently went to the Maihar Dehat (Nadan) police station on Tuesday afternoon after appearing in their school exams and reported the matter. A case was registered against the religious preacher for sexual assault/rape under IPC sections, besides provisions of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2012 and the SC/ST (Atrocities Protection Act).
“The religious preacher was brought for questioning on Tuesday night and after detailed questioning he was arrested on Wednesday,” said Maihar Dehat (Nadan) police station in-charge Bhupendra Mani Pandey.