Dimapur, November 25 (MExN): An ugly scene prevailed over Senjum village near Rangapahar Army Cantonment after an army jawan was accused of raping a 10 year and 3 month old Lotha girl at her residence while her parents were away attending church service here today.
According to Dimapur police officials, two army men came to the victim’s residence at around 7:30 this morning to sell forty litres of diesel to the victim’s uncle who resides nearby her house. The army jawans left the diesel cans saying they would pick them up later in the evening.
The perpetrators then came at around 11 am. One of them, the accused Rakesh Kumar, son of Sheri Derlal hailing from Rajasthan, who is a driver of the ASC (Army Supply Corp), handed out a Rupee ten note to the victim saying that it was the money for the Kerosene. Then the rapist went directly into the room, locked her two brothers, one sister and her friend, took the victim to another room and molested her. Police said that the victim had bite marks on her right cheek and her chest.
Police disclosed that the rapist’s friend, a Punjabi army jawan, who tried to intervene and stop the molestation, was told to leave the room by the rapist.
However, the victim started screaming, which attracted the nearby residents, who chased the two army jawans. The pursuers managed to catch hold of the name plate of the rapist’s friend. Police also found some seminal discharge on the bed and the floor which is to be sent for forensic tests.
Soon after the incident, residents of the area gathered and blocked the road leading to the Army camp and started to demand the culprit be handed over to them; as people from other parts of the town also started pouring in. The district administration, with the help of the Army authorities, apprehended the culprit and brought him to East Police Station, Dimapur.
The public, on hearing that the rapist had been put under custody in the Police station, turned into a mob and arrived at the Police Station, demanding that the culprit be handed over to them.
The situation soon turned out of hand at around 8.00 pm, as the mob started to pelt stones at the Police station. Two police personnel were injured, and four police vehicles were damaged by the stones thrown by the mob. The police then resorted to blank firing and fired around five rounds in the air, but failed to disperse the mob. However, the timely arrival of more IRB reinforcement quelled the situation from deteriorating any further.
Police have registered a case in the West Police Station under IPC 144/07/376 Rape and further investigation is on. The accused has denied that he has committed the crime, police said, however, they added that the words of the rapist’s friend, who will also be summoned during the investigation, will be very crucial in the course of investigation and trial.
