Raped Madhya Pradesh teen left home in Satna in search of better life

The CCTV footage of the injured and semi-clad girl going door to door for help but getting seemingly shooed away went viral and triggered outrage on Wednesday

Updated on: Sep 28, 2023, 14:45:38 IST

By Shruti Tomar

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The 15-year-old girl, who was seemingly turned away as she begged for help after being allegedly raped in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain, has told police she arrived in the city on Sunday after running away from her village in Satna in search of a better life a day earlier.

The girl’s family registered a complaint in Satna when she went missing. (HT PHOTO)

Police superintendent Sachin Sharma said the girl told them that an auto driver raped her and that five people have been detained for interrogation. The girl’s family registered a complaint in Satna when she went missing.

The CCTV footage of the injured and semi-clad girl going door to door for help but getting seemingly shooed away went viral and triggered outrage on Wednesday.

Rahul Sharma, a local priest, eventually rescued her and took her to a hospital where a medical examination confirmed she was raped.

The outrage prompted the state home minister Narottam Mishra to announce the formation of a Special Investigation Team to probe the incident.

Police officers quoted the girl telling the investigators that she was upset with her life in Satna. She took a bus to Ujjain, where she was raped on Sunday evening. The assault left her unconscious. When she came to, she began walking on Monday morning seeking help but no one seemed to be ready to assist her.

She had been walking for three hours when the priest helped her. Rahul Sharma said it was heart-wrenching to see the girl semi-clad and bleeding. “She was trembling and crying. I informed the police immediately.” He said he found the girl at the main gate of his ashram.

Rahul Sharma said the girl was incoherent. “It was difficult to understand what she was saying. In sign language, I asked her whether she wanted to eat. She nodded. I offered her food which she ate as if she had not eaten for days.” He added the girl was terrified and kept hiding behind him. “I assured her she was safe.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

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