A nine-year-old Dalit girl was allegedly gang-raped by two minor boys from her village in the Haldi area of Ballia district, police said on Tuesday.
An FIR was lodged based on a complaint filed by the girl’s father, a resident of a village under Haldi police station limits, they said.
According to the complaint, the accused allegedly lured the girl with a bribe and sexually assaulted her on the evening of May 23 while she was grazing goats outside the village. The complaint also alleged that the accused used casteist slurs during the incident.
Bairia Deputy Superintendent of Police Mohammad Fahim Qureshi said that the two accused boys are 11 to 12 years old and were known to the girl.
Based on the complaint, a case was registered on Monday against the two boys under Section 70(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), related to gang rape, along with provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, and relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The girl has been sent to the District Women’s Hospital for a medical examination on Tuesday, he said.
Proceedings are underway to record the girl’s statement and the police are taking necessary legal action, he added.
