Fortnight after rape, UP teen dies by suicide

The girl was allegedly kidnapped by two persons when she was on her way to school on the morning of September 16. Two days later, the teenager returned home and told her family that she had managed to escape from her captors in Lucknow. She was allegedly raped by the two persons who had taken her to a hotel in Lucknow.

The two are yet to be identified, police said.

Deputy Inspector General (Ayodhya Range) Amrendra PD Singh said, “One of the arrested persons is the girl’s aunt. The other is a 35-year-old man who knew the girl and her family. He was present when the two persons kidnapped the girl. The aunt helped in the abduction. I can’t divulge more details as the probe is on. We will share more details as the investigation makes progress.”

The two arrested accused have been sent to judicial custody, he added.

Another senior police officer said the two were arrested for conspiracy in the abduction of the girl. “The man who has been arrested belongs to a different community than that of the girl,” said the officer.

A family member of the victim said on Thursday, “The administration and police didn’t pay attention to the case. She had earlier told the police officers investigating the case that she would kill herself if the case was not taken seriously. She had told other officials too that if  those who raped her were not caught, she would kill herself.”

“The men took her to Lucknow and raped her. I reported the incident to the police but nobody paid heed. The policemen used to come and enquire about what had happened,” added the family member.

The girl was said to have hanged herself in her house. The last rites were performed by her family members on Thursday after a post-mortem examination.

In a statement, Ambedkar Nagar Superintendent of Police Ajit Kumar Sinha said, “On September 16, we received a complaint by the victim’s family and registered a case under Section 363 (kidnapping) of the Indian Penal Code. After the victim returned home, her medical examination was conducted and her statement was recorded. In her statement, she said that two unidentified persons raped her. Then the sections of gangrape and those of the Protection of Children Against Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act were added to the FIR.”