Teen ‘gang-raped’ in ICU by hospital staffer, 3 others

The girl was not in a condition to speak or call for help at the time of the incident. But she informed her relatives about it when she was transferred to the general ward on Friday. According to the complaint, the accused raped the girl in her bed inside the ICU.

ABHINANDAN SINGH, Bareilly superintendent of police

LUCKNOW : A teenage girl undergoing treatment at a private hospital in Uttar Pradesh’s Bareilly town was allegedly gang-raped at the facility’s intensive care unit (ICU) by a staffer and three unidentified men, the police said on Sunday.

The 17-year-old girl was raped on Wednesday night, a day after she was admitted to the ICU after being bitten by a venomous insect, according to the complaint filed by her father.

“The girl was not in a condi- tion to speak or call for help at the time of the incident. But she informed her relatives about it when she was transferred to the general ward on Friday.

According to the complaint, the accused raped the girl in her bed inside the ICU. The bed has long curtains around it, and that apparently blocked the view of other staff,” said Bareilly superintendent of police Abhinandan Singh.

The police have registered a first information report (FIR) and launched an investigation. Singh said two police teams are looking for Sunil Sharma, a helper at the hospital, and the other three, who are on the run. The accused have been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act.

The hospital management denied the rape. “There were other patients and at least three staff members inside the ICU on Wednesday. None of them have corroborated the claims of the minor girl,” read an official response from the hospital. It added that hospital authorities will cooperate with the police investigation.

The teenager was taken for a medical examination on Saturday. Investigators have sent the clothes she was wearing at the time of the incident for forensic tests.

“Our teams are speaking to other patients and staff regarding the incident for our investigation,” Singh said.

This was the second such incident in Uttar Pradesh in less than a month. On October 15, a ward boy and a trainee pharmacist allegedly raped a teenager at the district hospital in Bagpat. The accused have been arrested and they are undergoing trial.