MAN HELD FOR RAPE, ABDUCTION OF MINOR GIRL IN AHMEDABAD

AHMEDABAD: The Vadodara police have arrested a 20-yearold man hailing from Bihar for allegedly abducting and raping a minor girl belonging to a different religion, an official said on Wednesday.

The accused was taken into custody on Tuesday after he arrived at Gujarat’s Vadodara airport along with the 15-yearold girl, he said. He had lured the girl, a resident of Chhani area in Vadodara city, on the pretext of marrying her and then allegedly raped her multiple times since March, Chhani police station inspector R D Makwana said.

A probe into the case revealed the accused is a native of Darbhanga in Bihar and works as a mechanic in Ranoli area of Vadodara, he said.

As per the FIR, the accused returned to Bihar during the lockdown last year. He came back to Vadodara a few months back and again contacted the minor girl, whose parents work as labourers. “A week back, the accused promised to marry the girl and convinced her to accompany him to his native place. They both travelled in private luxury bus and reached Darbhanga after two days. After the girl’s family complained about her abduction, we called the accused’s family and asked them to immediately send both of them back,” the official said.

The accused was arrested soon after he arrived at the Vadodara airport on Tuesday, while the girl was counselled and later handed over to her family, the official said.