Odisha: 3 held after video of forcing minor to strip before camera goes viral

Though the incident had allegedly taken place on April 4, the girl’s father lodged an FIR with the police here today after the shots went viral on Wednesday.

Seven months after a minor girl of tribal-dominated Mayurbhanj district was stripped naked by a group of men, the Odisha police on Thursday arrested three of the accused just days after the video of the incident went viral.

Two people were arrested under different sections of IPC, IT ACT and The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act) 2012.

Three days ago, the video of a girl being stripped naked by a few youths had gone viral on social media. The video showed the girl being forced to remove her clothes. Another youth, who appeared to be her friend, is seen sitting helplessly.

Though initially it was presumed that the incident took place in a Bhubaneswar public park, city police commissioner YB Khurania ruled out the possibility.

Further police probe revealed that the incident occurred near Baripada town in April this year, but the video made it to social media only a few days ago.

Police in Mayurbhanj arrested tribal youths Deepak Mahanta, Puroshattam Mahanta and Laxmikanta Mahanta after the victim’s father lodged an FIR at Baripada Town police station here this afternoon.

The three were arrested from Jatipur village and charged under various sections of IPC and the Pocso Act, said Mayurbhanj SP Anirudh Singh.

Police said the victim, a Class 9 student, had gone to an isolated place near Jatipur with her friend when the incident took place. Seeing the girl and her friend kissing, the three youths asked the girl to strip naked. The girl did not report about the incident all this while out of shame.