The police in Andhra Pradesh's Visakhapatnam district registered a case of rape against a 23-year-old army jawan on Friday after a minor accused him of making her pregnant and cheating her on the promise of marriage.
The incident took place under the jurisdiction of the Chodavaram police in the district.
While the jawan is presently considered absconding, media reports suggest that he was posted in Kolkata.
The jawan has been identified as Jonnapalli Jagannadham, while the complainant was said to stay near his house.
Speaking to reporters, Visakhapatnam (rural) Superintendent of Police Rahul Dev Sharma said, “The jawan developed intimacy with the girl when he came to Vizag on leave in November and had a physical relationship with her.”
The police said that the accused also threatened the victim, not to tell anyone about the relationship.
As the girl fell sick and was taken to a hospital, doctors revealed that she was pregnant.
On learning about the incident, the girl and her parents approached the accused and proposed that the duo get married.
However, the victim told the police that the jawan had rejected the proposal, even alleging that the accused's family had offered money to terminate the pregnancy.
Following this, a case has been registered with the Chodavaram police under Sections 376 (Rape), 417 (Cheating), 420 (Cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property) and 506 (Criminal intimidation) read with 34 (Acts done by several persons in furtherance of common intention) of the IPC.
As the victim was a minor, the accused was also booked under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Andhra Pradesh has recently witnessed a spate of sexual crimes against children, which has resulted in angry residents taking to the streets to protest.
Earlier this month, residents blocked a road near a police station, pelted stones, and set fire to some vehicles, as news of an alleged attempt to sexually assault a 10-year-old in Guntur district spread.
Earlier that week, the Srikalahasthi Rural police in Chittoor district arrested a 65-year-old man on charges of raping two minor girls.
That was preceded by yet another incident when it was reported that a 14-year-old minor girl was allegedly repeatedly raped and impregnated in a town in Guntur district by a local TDP leader.
Responding to one such incident, Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu had earlier called for publicly hanging such rapists, adding that his government would be tough while dealing with such criminals.
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