Toddler raped in Jharkhand; panchayat fines accused, funds liquor feast
text_fields
Jharkhand: A shocking case has emerged from Jharkhand's Gumla district, where a three-year-old girl was allegedly raped and a village panchayat attempted to suppress the crime by imposing a Rs 1 lakh fine on the accused instead of reporting the matter to the police, officials said on Monday.
The incident took place in Palma village in Gumla district.
According to officials, the accused, identified as Sunil Lohra, was directed by the panchayat to pay Rs 1 lakh as a penalty. Of the amount, Rs 20,000 was paid immediately and allegedly used by those present to organise a feast involving meat and liquor, while the remaining Rs 80,000 was to be paid within a week.
Before the matter could be buried, police received a tip-off that the village panchayat was trying to settle the case internally by imposing a fine on the accused to prevent it from reaching the authorities. Police then intervened, registered an FIR and arrested Lohra.
Officials said the victim's family had not approached the police due to pressure from villagers. After receiving information about the incident, police reached the village, recorded the statement of the victim's mother, registered a case and took the accused into custody.
According to the police, the incident occurred around 4 p.m. on Saturday when Lohra visited the victim's home. The child's mother was at home when the accused allegedly offered to look after the girl so she could finish her household chores.
Police said Lohra then allegedly took the child into a room and sexually assaulted her. Hearing her daughter cry, the mother rushed inside and found the child bleeding.
Instead of informing the police, the matter was taken before the village panchayat.
The victim's family alleged that some panchayat members first took the child to a private doctor before convening a public meeting on Sunday. During the meeting, it was decided to settle the matter within the village by imposing a Rs 1 lakh fine on the accused. Rs 20,000 was paid by the accused on the spot. According to the officials, the feast, funded with the Rs 20,000 given by the accused, was underway when police arrived.
Further proceedings are underway, and details are awaited.
With IANS inputs