Minor boy rapes 15-year-old, kin held for concealing it

A minor girl, who just turned 15, is now eight months pregnant and has been admitted to a hospital after a 16-year-old boy, a distant relative, allegedly raped her at their residence in Khar.

Instead of immediately informing the police about the crime, the boy’s family, in a bid to save him, concealed the facts for months till the girl’s condition worsened.

The Nirmal Nagar police has now arrested the boy, his 38-year-old father and his 40-year-old aunt for being complicit in the alleged crime. The police, to protect the girl’s identity, has withheld the name of the two accused. All of them live in a chawl near Nirmal Nagar.

The girl is poor and hails from a village in Bihar. The accused brought her here when she was a 13-year-old on the pretext of “educating” her but made her do all the household work.

A family member of the accused is ailing and the girl was made to look after the person. The 16-year-old-son then allegedly raped the girl at their home due to which she got pregnant. The family members didn’t inform the police and when the girl’s bump started showing, the 38-year-old man sent her to the boy’s aunt’s house in Malad.

Someone informed a social activist, who in turn tipped off a lady constable from the Social Service Branch. The girl was then brought to the police station and later admitted to a hospital where she will be delivering the child.

Senior inspector of Nirmal Nagar police Vasudev Jamdade confirmed that an FIR has been registered under section 376 (rape) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code and 4 (penetrative sexual assault), 8 (sexual assault) and 12 (sexual harassment upon a child) of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

They were arrested on Thursday night and produced before a sessions court on Friday where they were remanded to judicial custody. The juvenile was produced before a juvenile court, which has sent him to the Dongri correction home.