In the past two days, 19 cases of rape involving minor girls under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act have come to light in the city, three of which are particularly alarming. The first case was reported at Malad police station on Saturday.
According to the police sources, a 17-year-old minor boy raped a 16-year-old girl. The girl is 8 weeks pregnant. After the case came to light, on the complaint of the victim girl`s mother, Malad police registered a case caught the accused boy, and sent him to a Dongri children`s home. Since the incident happened within the limits of Kandivali police station, the case has been handed over to Kandivali police for further investigation.
The victim girl was the daughter of the accused`s tuition teacher. The accused boy used to go for tuition there befriended the victim and had physical relations with her twice in June and July at the teacher`s house.
The girl was initially admitted to Shatabdi Hospital for treatment. Later, her family transferred her to a private hospital, according to an officer from Malad police station.
Another case was reported and registered in Vile Parle police station. a 29-year-old accused allegedly raped 7-year-girl.
The victim revealed this to her mother and on the complaint of the mother the Vile Parle police registered the case and arrested the accused on Saturday.
The accused has a prior history of sexual offences involving minors. He was previously booked and arrested in 2018 for allegedly raping minor girls and filming the act, according to an officer from Vile Parle police station.
The third incident took place in Dahisar West where an auto rickshaw driver allegedly sexually harassed a 15-year-old student going home.
MHB police have registered a case and started investigating the incident. It is believed that the victim girl lives in Dahisar West and studies in a school there. On Saturday, she went to school as usual. In the afternoon, she left school in a rickshaw to go home. The driver pretended to stop the rickshaw in a municipal garden on the pretext of some problem. He parked the rickshaw near a garden. And he started physically abusing the girl by touching her body and other parts.
On returning home, the girl informed her family about the sexual harassment.
Girls mother approached the MHB police station and registered a case against the unknown rickshaw driver. The Police are searching for the rickshaw driver through CCTV footage.
Since the Badlapur minor girls were raped in the school it has been seen that there has been an increase in registering of rape and POSCO cases in the city.
- On average daily 12 rape and POSCO cases were registered till 23 August.
- In the last 8 days, the city has witnessed 59 rape with POSCO cases 15 and 11 cases registered on 26 August and 30 August.
