In a glaring example of deteriorating law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh, an attempt was made to sexually assault a 20-year-old girl after taking her at gunpoint.

When she resisted, the accused opened fire to kill her. Luckily, the accused missed the target and the victim received a minor injury.

Sources said that the CCTV footage showed the girl trying to snatch the pistol from the accused, Rohit, before she was attacked on Thursday.

Reports said that the accused had been harassing the girl, a second-year BA student at Mahila Degree College, for the last five to six months and was madly in love with her. He had been pressuring the victim to talk to him, to which she repeatedly refused.

When the girl was returning home from her college after giving an exam, the accused confronted her again and tried to talk to her. When she again refused to talk, Rohit took out a pistol and pointed it at her.

In the CCTV, the victim is seen attempting to snatch the pistol from the accused before he overpowers her and opens fire but he misses the target.

She is presently out of danger.

Before the incident, Rohit and his friends had created chaos in the street and brandished arms and swords outside her house. A video of the same went viral on social media.

The victim's mother said Rohit used to follow her daughter and look at her with bad intentions. She said she had complained to his family members, and he had agreed not to follow and harass her daughter. However, after some time, Rohit started stalking her daughter, the mother added.

Superintendent of Police Gyanendra Kumar said the police took note of the matter and had launched a search to find and arrest the accused.

“A case was registered based on the complaint of the victim. We will take strict action against the accused,” the SP added.

In another case of sexual assault, police have booked a school principal for allegedly raping a minor girl student and have formed teams to arrest him.

The FIR was lodged on Thursday, after a purported video of the incident went viral on social media platforms.

“We have booked DK Mishra (40), who is the principal of a private school, for raping a 15-year-old girl student of the school,” Circle Officer of Sirathu Avadesh Kumar Vishwakarma said.

On the basis of the complaint, the police have booked the accused under Section 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code along with relevant sections of the POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act at Kokhraj police station of the district.

The alleged incident took place in April, according to police.

“The girl was allegedly threatened by the accused to not tell anyone about the incident. The family members, however, came to know about it when the video of the incident was posted online,” the officer said.

“Teams have been formed to arrest the accused, who is currently absconding,” the CO added.

Meanwhile, in Bahraich district, a man coming out of the mosque after prayers was brutally hacked to death in broad daylight on Friday.

The members of the community later staged a demonstration, demanding stern action against the accused.

Reports said that Wasim Khan (55) of Sondrai village in Matera, went to offer namaz in  a mosque located a short distance from his house on Friday morning. According to the villagers, as soon as he came out of the mosque after offering namaz, the accused, who was standing just outside the mosque, suddenly attacked Khan with a knife. He brutally stabbed Khan several times and fled after the victim fell in a pool of blood.

The locals tried to shift the victim to hospital but he succumbed to his injuries on the spot. 

The police reached the spot and started the investigation with the help of the forensic team. Police station in-charge Parmanand Tiwari said that the reason for the incident had not been ascertained yet.

The body was sent for post-mortem.