17-year-old girl gangraped in Madhya Pradesh’s Pachmarhi forest, three arrested

A 17-year-old girl was allegedly gang-raped in a forest in Madhya Pradesh's Pachmarhi, a popular tourist destination, last week. Three men are accused of taking her and a male acquaintance to a secluded area and assaulting the teenager. The incident was reported to the police by the girl, who had been returning home with her acquaintance.

According to police, the men approached the pair and took them to a secluded spot, where they intimidated the victim and committed the sexual assault. The accused allegedly dropped the girl and her acquaintance back home and threatened them not to speak about the incident. The girl reported the assault to the Pachmarhi police, leading to the swift arrest of the three men within six hours of the complaint.

Narmadapuram Additional Superintendent of Police Abhishek Rajan stated that an incident involving the sexual assault of a minor had been reported in Pachmarhi on the 19th. The victim was returning home with an acquaintance when a friend of the acquaintance arrived with two others, taking them to a secluded spot where the assault occurred.

The three accused have confessed to the crime and are now facing court. Police have registered a case under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for gang rape and additional provisions for causing hurt, criminal intimidation, and common intention. The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) has also been invoked.