Youth rapes 4-year-old, held

Zirakpur, November 22

A four-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a 28-year-old youth at Baltana here last night. The accused, who hails from Abheypur village near Panchkula, has been arrested. A case has been registered against him under the IPC and the POCSO Act on a complaint of the victim’s father, a migrant labourer. The police said the accused, Raju (28), who stays in the same locality, took the minor on the pretext of buying her biscuits from a nearby shop. The incident came to light when the minor did not return home till late at night. The victim’s parents approached the police after their search for their daughter turned futile.

The police said they heard cries from a jungle behind the police chowki and found the accused forcing himself on the minor. Satinder Singh, in-charge of the Baltana police chowki, said the victim’s medical examination confirmed rape. OC