A minor girl aged 4 was allegedly raped and stoned to death by a 65-year-old man in Pune on Friday, leaving another blot on the safety of females in the country. In the aftermath of the incident, an agitated mob blocked the Pune-Satara highway late Friday night, resulting in traffic snarls. Senior police officials rushed there to pacify them and restore order.

Protestors call for Bandh on Saturday

Eventually, the highway was cleared, but the protestors called for a bandh (strike) in the area on Saturday. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister (CM) Devendra Fadnavis took cognisance of the incident, terming it ‘shocking’, and said the state would seek capital punishment for the accused.

Upon receipt of the detestable incident, the police arrested the accused and booked him under the Protection of Children From Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, as well as other provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

Accused lured girl, raped-murdered her in cowshed

According to a preliminary probe carried out by the police, the victim had come to her grandmother’s house for summer vacation. She was playing near a local temple on Friday noon when the accused allegedly lured her and took her to a cowshed. He allegedly violated the girl there, stoned her to death and left her there. When she failed to return home, her kin and locals began searching for her. Upon sifting through the CCTV footage, they found that the accused had taken the girl to a cowshed. Soon after this, the girl’s body was recovered from the cowshed.

After the police were alerted, they rushed to the spot promptly and arrested the accused, while the girl’s body was referred to a hospital for autopsy.

Accused a habitual offender; people stage ‘Rasta Roko’ protest

As the news of the incident spread, it infuriated the locals, who took to the streets to stage the ‘Rasta Roko’ protest. They went to the Pune-Satara highway and staged sit-ins there, refusing to take the girl’s body for last rites. They also alleged that the arrested accused had a criminal record, and had been arrested earlier too for involvement in sexual assault cases.

After the Superintendent of Police (SP) spoke to the agitators and assured them of a speedy probe into the incident, they cleared the highway. The SP said that the chargesheet against the accused will be submitted within 15 days, and the case will be heard by a fast-track court.

CM Fadnavis addresses media-persons

On Saturday, CM Fadnavis spoke to media-persons in light of the incident, and said that the case will be brought before a fast-track court. He asserted, “We will seek capital punishment for the accused. The incident is highly condemnable and shocking. The case will be fast-tracked, and a death sentence will be demanded for him.”