A man was remanded to police custody by a court in Pimpri-Chinchwad on Monday for the sexual assault and harassment of his wife’s minor niece in Nigdi.
The 30-year-old man, who works as a driver, was arrested on Sunday and will be in police custody till February 28, according to police sub-inspector (PSI) Dnyaneshwar Subhash Kokate of Nigdi police station, who is investigating the case.
The incident first occurred on October 7, 2019, and continued till October 25, 2019 while the teenager, who is a Class 10 student, was living in the accused man’s house, according to her complaint.
She was visiting her aunt, along with her mother and two brothers, during the time of the incident, according to the police.
“The minor girl was on vacation since the school has closed for Diwali holidays. Her parents were involved in a minor domestic dispute and so, her mother had brought the children to her sister’s house. The victim’s mother works as a labourer, so she had to go to work and the accused used to come home in the evening and sexually harass the minor,” said PSI Kokate.
The girl went back to her father’s house with her mother and brothers when the vacation concluded on October 27, 2019.
{{/usCountry}}The girl went back to her father’s house with her mother and brothers when the vacation concluded on October 27, 2019.
{{/usCountry}}“The girl’s father is alcoholic and abusive and she was scared of opening up about the incident. She also had school, but her health was deteriorating,” said PSI Kokate.
On Sunday, months after the incident, she was visiting her father’s side of the family with her father in Pimpri. Her aunt asked her the reason behind her deteriorating health. That is when the girl broke down and told the aunt about what had happened, according to the police.
The aunt, then, took the minor to the police station and got a case registered.
A case under Sections 354, 376, 376(j)(n) of the Indian Penal Code along with Sections 4, 8, and 12 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act was registered at the Nigdi police station against the 30-year-old.