ROURKELA: A 15-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped by two youths while a third man in his 50s, taking advantage of her precarious situation, unsuccessfully attempted to assault her sexually in Bisra police limits of Sundargarh district.
The incident came to light on Thursday after Uditnagar police arrested the three who were known to each other. The two main accused are in the age group of 25 to 30 years while the third is a 55-year-old fish vendor.
The victim, who belongs of Uditnagar police limits of Rourkela, had left home on Tuesday over some family dispute. While she was waiting at Rourkela railway station the same evening, one of the accused befriended her and on the pretext of offering help, took her to Bisra where the crime was committed, police said. She was kept at the house of the fish vendor who on Thursday afternoon dropped her at Rourkela possibly fearing police action.
Rourkela SP Nitesh Wadhwani said the girl had left home on Tuesday but her family lodged a missing person complaint on Wednesday night since she had, on a previous occasion too, taken off without informing the parents.
Uditnagar police began the search from the railway station and collected clues about her whereabouts. However, the fish vendor on Thursday afternoon dropped her at Rourkela. As soon as police got wind of her return, it arrested one culprit from Rourkela and the other two from Bisra while they were preparing to escape, Wadhwani said.
As per preliminary investigation, one of the accused who befriended the victim at the railway station took the girl to the house of the fish vendor at Bisra where the second youth joined him. The youths separately committed sexual assault on the minor victim. Before dropping the girl off at Rourkela, the 55-year-old also intended to rape her but failed as the girl protested, DIG (western range) Brijesh Rai said.
Investigation into the incident was underway and the trio has been charged with gang-rape under section 70 (2) of Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita and POCSO. They would be produced in a court on Friday. The DIG said chargesheet will be submitted early in the case to expedite prosecution.
Since October when he joined as SP, Wadhwani said all police stations under Rourkela police district have been instructed to immediately register complaints of sexual offences against minor girls and women and take prompt action.
The latest gang-rape comes close on the heels of gang-rape of two minor girls under Plant Site police station and another such assault on a minor girl by five persons in two separate episodes under RN Pali police station. The incidents had occurred on September 21 and 22 respectively.
Heinous crime
Two main accused are in the age group of 25 to 30 years
The third accused is a 55-year-old fish vendor
The youths committed the crime in the fish vendor’s house at Bisra
The 55-year-old also intended to rape her but failed