JAJPUR: In a shocking incident, a 25-year-old youth was arrested on Friday for allegedly branding a minor girl with hot iron for rejecting his marriage proposal in Atira village within Bari police limits.
The accused was identified as Debendra Kumar Jena of Atira village. Police said Debendra was in a one-sided love relation with the 17-year-old victim of the village. He had offered a marriage proposal to her but the minor had turned it down.
On Tuesday night, the accused called the girl to a secluded place and gave her Rs 1,000 to purchase a mobile phone in the hope of making her agree to his marriage proposal. However, the girl outrightly refused the offer. “When the victim turned down her offer, the accused thrashed her. Debendra also branded her with a hot iron rod which he had kept hidden nearby,” said a police official.
The girl’s father lodged an FIR basing on which Bari police conducted raids and nabbed Debendra. The accused was produced in court and remanded to judicial custody.