E-Paper
Special unit set up to probe sexual crimes against minors in Ludhiana district
The unit will speed up investigation in POCSO cases and file chargesheet in the court at the earliest, says ADCP
To speed up investigation in cases related to sexual offences against minors, a special team under the supervision of additional deputy commissioner of police (ADCP) Sachin Gupta has been formed in Ludhiana to look into such cases.
The Punjab police has formed such special units in all districts to probe cases lodged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
In Ludhiana, the team has already started working and has solved a year old case in which a 12-year-old girl was gangraped and murdered in Ladhowal.
The ADCP said the bureau will speed up investigation in such cases and file chargesheet in the court at the earliest. “It will help provide the victim timely justice. After lodging the FIR, police stations will send the files to the Punjab Bureau of Investigation. The bureau will investigate the case and file chargesheet against the accused,” he said.
Earlier, police stations used to investigate such cases. But due to a large number of such cases, investigation used to get delayed.
Rape cases in the city have seen a huge rise in the past four years. In 2016, 88 rape cases were reported in the city while in 2017, the number was at 99. In 2018, the city had witnessed 129 cases of rape while in 2019, 115 FIRs were lodged under rape charges.
SEXUAL ASSAULT AGAINST CHILDREN
January 8: A 20-year-old Giaspura resident kidnapped a minor girl and raped her for nine days.
January 14: A three-wheeler driver raped a 14-year-old girl who had lost her way. The accused offered her a lift in the vehicle and then took her to a vacant plot and sexually assaulted her.
January 26: The Dugri police arrested a hosiery worker for molesting a seven-year-old girl in Urban Vihar on Sunday. The accused has been identified as Manpreet Singh of Dugri, 30.
