Belagavi nightmare: 13-year-old abducted, dragged into sugarcane field and raped; two arrested

Belagavi (Karnataka): In a disturbing event from the Belagavi district of Karnataka on Tuesday, a 13-year-old girl was pulled into a sugarcane field and raped. Police have nabbed two people linked to the case- Manikantha Dinnimani and Iranna Sankammanavar.

Police said that one of them attacked the girl while the other aided him by keeping watch.

The crime was reported within the jurisdiction of the Muragoda police station. The police report indicates that the seventh-grade student was reportedly kidnapped and sexually assaulted while coming back from a flour mill.

The assault took place after the victim was pulled into a sugarcane field. The incident was revealed late, as the victim's family allegedly received threats to their lives.

Dinnimani and Sankammanavar raped the minor as she was heading home from the flour mill. The crime occurred at a spot situated only 300 meters from her home. After a complaint was lodged on Monday (December 1), the Murgod Police registered a case and nabbed the duo.

In response to the incident, Belagavi SP Bhimashankar Guled remarked, "The victim mentioned in her complaint that one of the two perpetrated of the crime while another assisted by standing watch."

Immediately after the complaint was filed, the police took the suspect into custody. A woman police officer has been assigned to investigate the case. SP Guled stated that the accused individuals, Manikantha and Iranna, would be presented before the court shortly.

Regarding the late reporting, the SP stated that the police will investigate why the complaint was filed late. "We will investigate to ascertain why the complaint was lodged late. In our experience, victims will be in shock. Initially, they won't open up; even if they do open up, they will be scared and fear society."

Magnifying the irrelevance of the delay in reporting the crime to the police, the SP said that the crime has occurred, preliminary investigations have indicated it, and the accused have been arrested.

"We will give protection to the victim if necessary. The police have not tried to compromise the case. Especially in POSCO cases, the police are careful. This is not a case to be compromised, and the policemen won't indulge in such activity," he said.