A 16-year-old girl has accused her father of repeatedly raping her, forcing her to miscarry and arranging to give her baby son to strangers, police allege. Six people, including the girl's father, have been arrested in India after the teenager made the accusation.
Allegations of Sexual Assault and Threats
The teenager filed a complaint at New Rajendra Nagar police station in Raipur, in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, alleging her father sexually assaulted her at a relative's house in the Amlihdih area. Police said the girl did not come forward straight away because her father had allegedly threatened to kill her if she told anyone what happened.
Officers allege the man went on to rape his daughter multiple times and she became pregnant. She eventually confided in an aunt, who told the father about the pregnancy, according to the police account.
Forced Miscarriage and Second Pregnancy
According to the complaint, the father bought abortion pills and with the aunt's help beat the teenager until she swallowed them, causing her to lose the baby.
Police say the girl became pregnant for a second time last year after further alleged assaults by her father. When he learned of the second pregnancy, the father is said to have taken his daughter to the home of a woman he knew, who agreed to look after her and make arrangements for the birth. Days later, that woman allegedly sent the teenager to stay with a friend, where she remained for around two months.
Hospital Birth and Baby Handover
Officers say before the girl was admitted to Vasudev Hospital in the Danganiya area of Raipur, the father's acquaintance concealed her true age and told staff she was an adult who was married. The teenager then had a caesarean section and gave birth to a boy. Police allege that after the delivery, the doctor who treated her, the girl's father and others involved arranged for the new-born to be handed over to someone else.
Investigators say the frightened teenager signed paperwork relating to the baby because she was scared about what might happen to her. She was reportedly kept at the home of a friend of her father's acquaintance for around 15 days after giving birth, before her father brought her back home.
Arrests and Ongoing Investigation
Police say that to get the girl admitted to hospital for the birth without questions being asked, the group falsified her Aadhaar card, India's national identity document, to make her appear older and married. A case has been registered against the accused at New Rajendra Nagar police station under multiple sections of India's Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita criminal code, along with provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act and the Juvenile Justice Act.
Senior police officers ordered immediate action once the complaint was filed, and New Rajendra Nagar police have since arrested six people, including the girl's father. Officers also seized two mobile phones during the investigation. Police say the investigation is continuing and further arrests or charges could follow.
