E-Paper
House of man accused of raping minor girl in Ujjain demolished
A video of the minor girl, semi-naked and bleeding, had gone viral on social media in which she was seen roaming around requesting for help
A joint team of municipal corporation and police demolished the illegally constructed house of a man accused of raping a minor girl in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain on Wednesday, after a video sent shock waves across the country on Monday in which the girl, semi-naked and bleeding, was seen roaming around requesting for help.
The accused, Bharat Soni, a 24-year-old auto-driver, had raped the 13-year-old girl from Satna district, on September 25. In the video, which went viral on social media on Monday, people were seen shooing the girl away. Police swung into action after the video invited massive outrage and arrested Soni the same day.
Ujjain Municipal Corporation commissioner Roshan Singh said, “The family of the accused was living on a government land by constructing a temple near a holy shrine of Muslims for the past 10 years. They had encroached upon land. We served a notice to the family on Tuesday to take out their belongings.”
On Wednesday, a joint team of police and municipal corporation officials demolished the illegal house, he added.
However, the locals said Soni used to supply opium illegally and was part of a sex racket. “The action should be taken against local municipal officers who ignored this illegal construction for years. Police should also probe the matter of opium supply and racket because everyone knows that Bharat was a criminal,” said a local resident, an auto driver, who didn’t wish to be named.
Meanwhile, the condition of the girl improved in a hospital in Indore, but no one is allowed to meet her at the hospital due to trauma. She is still afraid of the presence of any male member in her room, said the doctor.
The girl went missing on September 24 from Satna. She reached Ujjain by a train where Soni raped her and left her near a road. Later, an auto driver Rakesh Malviya saw her and left her at a crowded place as the girl couldn’t inform him about her whereabouts. Police arrested Malviya on Monday for hiding the matter.
Meanwhile, the girl’s father accused the police of not taking swift action in the matter. He alleged that the FIR was registered 24 hours after the incident. However, the police denied the charges.
