BARIPADA/ BHUBANESWAR: A 13-year-old dalit girl was allegedly abducted by three men, sexually assaulted for over 10 hours, and dumped near her house in Rairangpur town of Mayurbhanj district on Sunday.
The survivor, a resident of a village under Rairangpur Rural police limits, belongs to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community. She has been admitted to Rairangpur sub-divisional hospital.
Sources said the survivor and her elder sister had gone to a forest near their house at around 11 am on Sunday to relieve themselves. On the way, they reportedly encountered the elder sister’s boyfriend. The duo then went away, leaving the 13-year-old alone. Subsequently, three men, identified as Sk Mahabul, Sk Tipu, and Sk Oman, arrived on motorcycles. One of them, Oman, is a resident of the victim’s own village. The trio reportedly abducted the girl, took her to an isolated location and sexually assaulted her for more than 10 hours.
When the girl did not return home, her family members launched a search but could not trace her. At around 10 pm, her parents heard the sound of motorcycles, and upon stepping outside of their house, saw three men dumping the unconscious girl under a nearby mango tree before fleeing.
The parents rushed her to the hospital. During medical examination, doctors confirmed sexual assault. The survivor’s father filed a complaint in Rairangpur Town police station. After regaining consciousness, the girl reportedly told police that she recognised Oman from her village, but the other two were unknown to her.
Additional SP Deepak Gochhayat said police on Monday detained three persons and are questioning them. A case has been registered and further investigation is underway. Meanwhile, the district unit of BJD has threatened to observe a 12-hour bandh in Rairangpur if strict action was not taken against the accused.
BJD demands impartial probe into gangrape
The BJD on the day expressed concern and demanded an impartial probe into the gangrape.
Former chairperson of State Commission for Women Minati Behera said, “Such an incident when state government is busy celebrating its two year anniversary is extremely unfortunate.”
The BJD demanded an impartial investigation and sought advanced medical treatment, counselling and financial assistance for her. The party said fast-track courts should be made more active for speedy trial of cases involving crimes against women and minors.