AGARTALA: Two minor tribal girls were allegedly gang-raped in Tripura's Gomati district, police said on Friday.
The prime accused identified as Molarai Jamatia of Tingharia was arrested but the remaining eight accused are still at large, said Assistant Inspector General (AIG), Jyotishman Das Chowdhury.
According to police, the two girls came to attend 'Baishaki Mela', an annual cultural programme at Amarpur town of the district on Wednesday and met Molarai, who had befriended one of them over Facebook.
"From the fair premises, the youth took them to a rubber plantation at Chechua on Wednesday night on a scooter. Seven to eight youths were waiting there. After reaching there, Molarai and his friends raped the two girls", the AIG said.
Molarai then took both the girls to Amarpur and left them in the early hours of Thursday, he said, adding the victims went to Birganj police station.
Based on the statement of the two girls, the police swung into action and arrested Molarai for his alleged involvement in the gang rape case on Thursday.
"We have arrested the prime accused of the case and are trying to arrest other accused persons. The medical test of the victims have been done as part of the investigation process", he said.
The Tripura Commission for Women (TCW) has condemned the gang rape of the two tribal girls.
"It is shocking that two girls were gang-raped by a group of youths in Amarpur's Chechua area. We condemned the crime and demanded exemplary punishment for those involved in the heinous act", TCW chairperson Barnali Goswami said on Friday.