Odisha girl sold for Rs 7000, raped in Ranchi

A tribal girl from Odisha who had traveled to Ranchi to see the Jagannathpur rath yatra along with a friend, was allegedly sold by the latter to a man for Rs 7000. Deepak Mahato reports.

A tribal girl from Odisha who had traveled to Ranchi to see the Jagannathpur rath yatra along with a friend, was allegedly sold by the latter to a man for Rs 7000.

The girl was found at the Hatia railway station in a semi-conscious state on Tuesday and was admitted to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS). Now undergoing treatment at the hospital, she met her parents and told them about her ordeal on Friday.

The victim said, "I had come to Ranchi to see the rath yatra with my friend Suchita. After the mela was over, Suchita requested me to stay at her relative's residence and she promised we would return to Rourkela next morning."

Later, Suchita asked the victim to come to Delhi with her. "When I refused, she left without me. A few minutes later, one Pappu came and told me that Suchita has sold me to him for Rs 7000 and I should accompany him to Delhi."

When the victim refused, she was raped by Pappu and another man while four other men stood guard at the door. The girl somehow managed to escape and took help of an auto-rickshaw driver to reach Hatia railway station.

The police, however, is yet to record her statement. Manoj Kumar Gupta, Hatia rail police in-charge said they could not record her statement as she was not in a stable condition. "We are waiting for her to get medically fit."