E-Paper
Batala man offers lift to 13-year-old girl near Chintpurni shrine, rapes her
Accused is a member of religious group; booked for rape, abduction.
A 13-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a Punjab man, who offered her lift near Chintpurni shrine on the border of Una and Kangra districts of Himachal Pradesh late on Friday, police said.
The accused has been identified as Abhinandan, 32, a resident of Batala in Punjab.
The accused, a member of a religious group, was on a visit to Chintpurni and had offered the girl lift when she had gone to Bharwain market near the shrine, the police added.
He reportedly took the victim to a secluded place where he raped her.
The accused later dumped her on the road late on Friday.
The victim reached her home at around 1am and narrated her ordeal to her parents, who had already launched a search for the missing girl.
Since the crime took place in area under Kangra district, the parents approached Dehra police.
Dehra subdivisional police officer (SDPO) Lalman Sharma said police have registered a first information report (FIR) under Sections 376 (rape) and 363 (kidnapping) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act against the accused, who is on the run.
“Police have impounded the vehicle used in the crime and efforts are on to nab the culprit,” Sharma added.
The girl is admitted to a local hospital where her condition is said to be stable. The report of medical examination is awaited.
