(Trigger Warning: Description of rape and sexual violence. Reader discretion advised.)
Six men were arrested in Hyderabad's Meerpet area on Tuesday, 22 August, in connection with the alleged gang rape of a 16-year-old minor girl. The arrests come after Opposition parties-led protests across the city, demanding action against the accused.
According to the police, the incident took place at Nandanavanam Colony on the outskirts of Hyderabad, where seven men barged into the minor's residence.
The main accused, Abed-Bin-Khaled, dragged her into the bedroom and forced himself on her, the police told The Quint. Following this, the other accused persons took turns to force themselves on her, threatening her at knifepoint, the police added.
Based on the minor's complaint, a case has been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act, 2012.
The other accused have been identified as Tahseen, M Narsing, Ashraf, Md Faizal, and Md Imran. A minor has also been apprehended in connection with the case.
'Minor, Brothers Held at Knifepoint'
The survivor and her two brothers had to fend for themselves after their father abandoned the family, and their mother died by suicide, the police said.
According to the police, the girl and her brothers had moved to the colony to live with a relative earlier in August. At around 9 am on Monday, seven men armed with knives forced their way into the house of the minor, the police said.
"Three of them took the girl upstairs, while others threatened her brother and the other children at knifepoint. The three men took turns to rape her," DCP Sai Shree told the media.
Police officials said that the accused fled the spot after the girl started crying for help. Her brother alerted the neighbours and they, in turn, informed the police.
Protests in Meerpet
Meanwhile, the leaders of the Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) party staged a protest in Meerpet, demanding immediate arrest of the accused. They also demanded that the Telangana High Court take cognisance of the crime.
The protesters, who included local residents, claimed that those consuming ganja were involved in the crime, news agency PTI reported.
Holding placards that read "#Justice? #StopGanja #StopDrugs," the protesters squatted on the road and raised slogans.
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