Three accused held for molesting Bulandshahr gang rape victim

Ghaziabad: Three persons have been arrested by Ghaziabad police for allegedly molesting a minor girl who is a survivor of Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr district gang rape incident which took place near a highway in 2016.

The 15-year-old girl was molested by three men of her locality in Khora area of Ghaziabad while she was returning home from her coaching classes on Saturday evening.

According to police, the arrested accused have been identified as Ashu Bhati, Aneesh Sharma and Ravi Kumar Saini. Police said that all the three persons are natives of Khora area where the victim lives with her family at a rented house.

"Based on the complaint filed by victim's father, a case under IPC sections 354, 354C, 504 and 7/8 POCSO was registered against the three persons. Police teams acted upon a tip-off and arrested all the three accused from Thapar gate in Khora colony on Monday morning. They have been produced before the court and sent to jail," said Dharmendra Kumar, Station House Officer, Khora police station.

Police officials said that the incident took place on Saturday evening around 6 pm, when the girl was returning home from her coaching class.

The accused men, travelling on a motorcycle, accosted her and even snatched her mobile phone. They made lewd comments on the girl and fled away when the victim screamed and passerby noticed the scene.

Following the incident, the girl came home and narrated the ordeal to her parents. As the accused persons were known to them, the family filed a complaint naming all the three accused.