Date:13/01/2006 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2006/01/13/stories/2006011323730300.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Youth molests minor girl at vacant site

Staff Reporter

The accused fled the scene as the victim shouted for help

BANGALORE: A six-year-old girl was raped allegedly by a youth Vimal (22) at a vacant land on Davis Road in the Fraser Town police station limits on Thursday. The accused fled the scene after the incident.

The police said they have registered a case under Sections 366 A and 376 of the Indian Penal Code.

The accused is alleged to have offered the girl a biscuit before taking her to a parthenium-infested plot and raping her. He fled the scene when the girl screamed for help, alerting passers-by.

The youth, who was often seen in the neighbourhood, managed to escape although the residents gave a chase to him. The police said the youth's clothes were found at the scene of crime.

The girl was the daughter of Premila and Prashanth, a manual labourer. She was staying with her mother, who had come to her parents' home in Pillanna Gardens following a quarrel with her husband. The family was originally from Tamil Nadu and had a house in Lingarajapuram, the police said.

The victim was later taken to Bowring Hospital for treatment. The Fraser Town police are on the lookout for Vimal. Later, over 200 residents and vendors from the Davis Road area gathered at the site and demanded that the Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) clear the bushes on the site, which, they said, had become a haven for nefarious activities. "We are all worried about it. Even if somebody is killed here, nobody will know. The police and the BMP should do something about this," said a resident.

She said the site was a disputed one, with more than 10 claimants. But since nobody could establish their claims, the site was neglected and used by anti-social elements, she said.