A 17-year-old girl of Chirrayanam village located along the sea shore in Katrenikona Mandal of Konaseema district in Andhra Pradesh was allegedly raped by five men on February 6. However, the incident came to light only 10 days later, on Thursday, February 16 after the girl’s father lodged a complaint with the police. According to the reports, five persons have been arrested and booked under the POCSO Act.
According to a report by The Hindu, on the evening of February 6, the girl was on her way to get some drinking water when the five accused kidnapped her and took her to a remote area close to the village, where they allegedly gangraped her.
As per local media reports, the village elders intervened after the incident and attempted to negotiate with the victim's family for Rs 1 lakh from the father of the accused. However the father of the girl resisted and lodged a complaint against five youths at Katrenikona Police Station. It has come to light that all of the accused are from the same village and are majors. Additionally, according to a number of media reports, the son of the village sarpanch has been named as one of the accused.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Y Madhav Reddy and the local police are investigating the case.
The State Women's Commission responded to the crime on Friday, February 17 and emphasised that steps needed to be taken to ensure strict punishment for the perpetrators with a transparent investigation of the case.
In a statement issued by the Women’s commission, the Chairperson Vasireddy Padma instructed commission member K. Jayasri Reddy and the officers from the Women Development and Child Welfare Department to provide the victim with medical care and support in a statement. Padma also stated that she spoke with Superintendent of Police Sudheer Kumar Reddy and was following up on the incident.