Minor girl sexually assaulted, stabbed multiple times; critical
PROBE ON Police personnel said the exact sequence of events could only be ascertained after arresting suspect(s)
DELHI COMMISSION FOR WOMEN TOOK SUO MOTU COGNIZANCE OF THE CRIME AND ISSUED A NOTICE TO THE STATION HOUSE OFFICER OF PASCHIM VIHAR STN
NEW DELHI: A 12-year-old girl is battling for her life at the All India Institute of Medical Science (AIIMS) after she was allegedly sexually assaulted inside her home before being stabbed multiple times with a pair of scissors on Tuesday, the police said. Police are yet to identify or nab the alleged perpetrator(s).
A case of attempt to murder and sexual assault under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code and Section 8 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act has been registered at the Paschim Vihar West police station, a Delhi Police spokesperson said.
Police said the girl’s parents and sister work at a nearby garment factory.
They had gone to work and the girl was alone in the single-room house when the crime took place. The building where the family lives has many rooms which have been rented out to other people, mostly factory workers. Police are questioning her neighbours.
“Investigators are questioning people living in the building and the neighbourhood as well. Since the crime took place in a room, the role of someone she knew has not been ruled out. The CCTV cameras installed in the neighbourhood are also being scanned for clues,” the Delhi Police spokesperson said on Wednesday.
Joint commissioner of police (western range) Shalini Singh said the crime was reported to police control room around 5.30pm Tuesday by a neighbour who spotted the injured teenager coming out of her home.
An investigating officer, who did not want to be named, said a police team was dispatched and the personnel rushed the critically injured girl to a nearby government hospital. But on ascertaining her serious condition, doctors referred her to AIIMS.
The police officer said according to neighbours,they had found the girl, drenched in blood, walking out of the single room accommodation.
“They said the child fell unconscious before she could tell them anything. There was a deep stab wound to her head apart from other injuries to her abdomen and other parts of the body,” the officer said.
When the police team went inside, they found blood splattered all over the room and a bloodstained pair of scissors on the floor. A sewing machine in the room suggested that the alleged perpetrator(s) used the pair of scissors kept there to attack her.
“Prime facie, it appears that the suspect used the pair of scissors to try and kill the girl. The exact sequence of events can be ascertained only when we record the girl’s statement or after we nab and question the suspect(s),” the officer said.
On Wednesday, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) took suo motu cognizance of the crime and issued a notice to the station house officer (SHO) of Paschim Vihar police station, demanding by August 8 a copy of the FIR, detailed action-taken report and other information related to the case.
“Reportedly, the girl was brutally raped and the culprit(s) tried to kill her. Presently, she is fighting for her life in AIIMS, Delhi. It is reported that she was attacked with blunt objects and has injuries all over her body. This is a very serious matter,” the notice, signed by DCW chief Swati Maliwal, read.