Lucknow: The Kusaili village panchayat in Etawah district has announced that they would burn a man allegedly involved in the gangrape of a minor girl, who was forcibly detained and sexually assaulted for about a week. The accused, who belongs to the same village, is absconding.
The panchayat was held on Sunday evening after a case of gangrape and illegal detention of the victim was lodged at the Chaubia police station.
The panchayat was led by Balak Ram Yadav, Arjun Singh Yadav and Satya Ram Yadav. The girl’s parents and parents of two of the accused, Sukhbir Singh Yadav (32) and Shiv Kumar Katheriya, were also present.
Arjun Singh Yadav said after a detailed discussion, it was decided to award a punishment which would serve as a lesson for others. Sukhbir, who belongs to the same village and is absconding, will be set afire by villagers when caught, he said. The villagers have launched a search for Sukhbir, he added.
Etawah Additional SP Rishipal Singh, who is officiating as the SSP, said he was unaware of the panchayat’s decision. The police will arrest the accused before the locals reach him, he added.
Chaubia Station Officer Upendra Nath Rai said he was camping at Kusaili to collect details of the panchayat meeting.
Meanwhile, the victim’s statement was recorded in a local court on Monday. Rai said the doctors, who conducted the medical examination of the victim have not confirmed sexual assault but recommended forensic tests. He said the police have registered a case of abduction of the girl on May 4 on her father’s complaint. The complainant said Sukhbir and his friend Shiv Kumar abducted his 15-year-old daughter when she had gone to the fields in the morning of May 4. The SO said some locals informed about a girl kept in a room in Etawah city. The police raided the place on May 10 and rescued her. Shiv Kumar was arrested from the same room, while Sukhbir could not be traced. The victim told the police she was brought in a car to Etawah by Sukhbir, Shiv Kumar and two others. She was kept in a room where all four repeatedly raped her, Rai said.
The girl’s father accused the police of delaying her medical examination and keeping her in custody for two days. The medical examination was done on Sunday, he said.