Ghaziabad: Man rapes 5-year-old girl, arrested after gunfight

The girl’s father was at work while her mother had stepped out to a local market when the assault occurred

A 43-year-old man, accused of raping a five-year-old girl, was shot and injured during a police operation in a park in Vasundhara’s Sector 14 late Sunday night, police said. The police said that the suspect was the victim’s neighbour, adding that he absconded after the incident and was hiding in the park before being located around 8.30pm on Sunday.

An FIR was registered at the Indirapuram police station, and five teams were formed to locate the suspect originally from Budaun district. (Representational image)

The girl’s father approached the Indirapuram police at approximately 5pm on Sunday, filing a complaint regarding the sexual assault of his daughter. Following this, an FIR was registered at the Indirapuram police station, and five teams were formed to locate the suspect originally from Budaun district. In the FIR, the girl’s father said, “He raped my daughter, and this led her to bleed profusely. When I ran to nab him, he fled his house and absconded.”

According to Swatantra Kumar Singh, assistant commissioner of police (ACP) Indirapuram circle, “A police team reached the corporation park in Vasundhara’s Sector 14 upon receiving information that the suspect was in the park. Upon seeing the team approaching, the suspect opened fire at the officers with a country-made weapon in his possession. In the ensuing retaliatory fire, the suspect sustained a gunshot wound to his leg and was arrested before being taken to a hospital for treatment.”

Based on a complaint by the girl’s father, the police booked the suspect under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections 65(2) (rape on a woman under twelve years of age) and levied sections 5 (penetrative sexual assault on a child below twelve years) and 6 (aggravated penetrative sexual assault) at Indirapuram police station.

Officials familiar with the investigation revealed that the girl’s father was at work while her mother had stepped out to a local market when the assault occurred. “The suspect lured the girl to his room and raped her. The incident came to light when her parents returned home, and the girl disclosed what had happened. A medical examination later confirmed the assault,” said an officer from the Indirapuram police station.