Capital shocker: Fourth minor sexually assaulted in 10 days

Three men, including one who was injured in a police encounter, accused of raping a minor near Kalkaji Mandir in southeast Delhi were arrested on Tuesday, officials said. The assailants — an advocate and his brother, a final-year BSc mathematics student - posed as policemen and sexually assaulted the minor. The incident is the fourth alleged sexual assault of a minor reported in Delhi within the last 10 days.

“A PCR call was received at 8.45 pm on Monday regarding minor from Faridabad who had come here with her friend. They first went to the temple to offer prayers and then to the Astha Kunj Park, towards a somewhat secluded area,” Joint Commissioner of Police (Southern Range) Vijay Kumar said. According to police, the minor and their friend visited the temple at 7.00 pm on Monday and later went to a park nearby. 

The three accused— Asif, Hemant and his brother Manish — approached them in Aastha Kunj Park, posing as a policeman and took the minor to a secluded spot away at gunpoint. They later took turns to rape the minor.

Hemant, the lawyer and his brother, Mukesh were arrested from their house and are being questioned. They are natives of Faridabad and reside in Sri Niwaspuri in Delhi. The third accused, Asif allegedly fired three rounds at a police team led by Inspector Rajender Dagar when it tried to intercept him near the DM Office Road in Amar Colony in the early hours of Tuesday, the officials said. He was injured in retaliatory police firing. He was later shifted to the AIIMS Trauma Centre for treatment. 

Capital shocker: Fourth minor sexually assaulted in 10 days

Kumar said Astha Kunj Park is large and has multiple entry points. He noted that the boundary wall is broken in several places, some gates lack guards, and many areas within the park are poorly lit, factors he said contribute to making the park less safe for visitors. 

The investigation into the use of weapons during the encounter and the full circumstances surrounding the incident remains underway. The minor was medically examined at AIIMS, while crime and forensic teams examined the scene and collected relevant clues.

An FIR was registered at the Amar Colony police station under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Several teams were formed to trace the accused. 

The Kalkaji gangrape is the fourth reported case involving the alleged sexual assault of a minor in Delhi in the last two weeks, with the incidents reported from different parts of the national Capital. On Monday, a six-year-old girl was allegedly raped on Deshbandhu Gupta Road in central Delhi. The accused, identified as Ankit, was arrested, police said.

On September 17, a Class-6 student from Sadar Bazaar had stepped out of her house to buy a pencil and books when she was allegedly taken into a nearby tailoring shop by the shop owner. Police said the tailor, Maqsood, restrained the girl by tying her hands and legs and sexually assaulted her. He was subsequently arrested.

In another case on September 10, a 17-year-old girl in northwest Delhi’s Swaroop Nagar allegedly went to meet a friend and was subsequently sexually assaulted by him and his associates. The teenager was later found dead, with police alleging that she was stabbed multiple times. Her body was found on September 13 and four people, including three minors, were held.