3 held for minor’s rape, putting video on social media in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur

The police in Muzaffarpur arrested late Monday evening three of the four youth accused of gangrape of a minor girl on Friday, filming the act on their mobile phones and posting the video clip on social media.

The police had also picked up eight others for interrogation. They were believed to have helped the accused escape the Nawada village under Katra police station, after committing the heinous crime.

The three youth were arrested from Boxy Chowk locality in Katra police station area at around 11pm on Monday. The arrested youth have been identified as Gagan Kumar (21), Sachin Kumar (20) and Anish Kumar (21). The police were conducting raids to nab the fourth accused, Roshan Kumar, 23.

Bihar director-general of police (DGP) PK Thakur confirmed the arrest.

The youth, accused of rape and violation of the information technology act among others, were likely to be produced in court later in the day.

Three persons, who reportedly pressurised the victim family not to lodge a formal complaint, were also under police scanner.

The police were also probing the role of the panchayat of the village at which the incident occurred, around 70 km from the district headquarters town of Muzaffarpur. The panchayat had on Saturday convened a meeting in which it called the victim and the accused and tried to barter a compromise for the fear of the village getting a bad name.

In its endeavour to hush up the matter, the meeting, instead, ended up revealing the identity of the minor victim and culprits.

“It was a classic case of a move backfiring. The panchayat meeting had been called to suppress the matter, but it ended up exposing the real perpetrators without any effort of the police,” said a police officer.

Muzaffarpur senior SP Vivek Kumar said the medical examination of the girl had been conducted by a five-member medical board and its report was awaited. “Her statement under section 164 of CrPC has also been recorded before a judicial magistrate,” he added.

The police in Muzaffarpur district of north Bihar had constituted a special investigation team (SIT) to nab the four accused.

The incident took place after the 14-year-old girl was abducted by the four youths when she was returning from a Dussehra fair. The accused pounced upon her, shot the crime on their mobile phones and uploaded the video clip on internet sites.

The police had registered an FIR on the basis of the statement of the victim’s family, against seven persons, including four youths.

The DGP had directed inspector-general of police (weaker sections), under the crime investigation department, to monitor the case.