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Two men working for a trust, managing a well-known temple in the town of Maihar in Satna district of Madhya Pradesh, raped, repeatedly bitten and mistreated a 12-year-old girl. The accused, Ravindra Kumar Ravi and Atul Bhadoliya, allegedly lured the girl to an isolated location and assaulted her.
The police said that they admitted the profusely bleeding girl to a hospital at the divisional headquarters Rewa for advanced medical care.
According to the media reports, a senior official stated that the accused allegedly inserted a hard object into the victim's private parts. Nevertheless, confirmation of this can only be obtained once the victim's medical examination report is received.
Accused Ravindra Kumar Ravi and Atul Bhadoliya inserted a stick or some other object into the 12-year-old's private parts, although this can only be confirmed in a medical report, according to Satna Superintendent of Police Ashutosh Gupta. The girl's medical report is still awaited while doctors monitor her health, he added.
“Her body bore bites and injuries which pertain to sexual assault,” he said. Asked about the condition of the girl, the SP said a panel of doctors treating her said her condition was “okay” at his point of time. “We are taking legal action against the accused,” Gupta said.
According to Gupta, the accused, both aged 30, were presented in a local court on Friday and subsequently remanded to 14-day judicial custody. The charges pressed against them include IPC sections 376 (rape), 376DB (gang rape on a minor under 12 years old), 366A (procuring a minor girl), 323 (causing voluntary harm), 324 (causing voluntary harm with dangerous weapons), 34 (common intention), and other applicable provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, as reported by the police.
The Maa Sharda Devi Mandir Management Committee, Maihar, issued a press statement in a related development, stating that they have immediately sacked Ravi and Bhadoliya, who were employed with them, after a criminal case was registered against them. The statement, bearing the signature of its administrator, said that the temple's image has been tarnished by their indecent act.
The police have been instructed by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan to take stringent measures against the accused and guarantee the survivor receives optimal medical care.
“I have received information about the rape in Maihar. My heart is full of pain, I am distressed. The police have arrested the criminals. Instructions have been given to the administration to make arrangements for proper treatment of the girl. No criminal will be spared, strictest action will be taken,” Chouhan said.
Madhya Pradesh Congress president, Kamal Nath, expressed strong condemnation towards the incident, stating that the victim endured a brutal and inhumane assault, bearing resemblance to the infamous 2012 Nirbhaya case in Delhi.
Attacking the government, Nath tweeted: "The incident of rape of a girl in Maihar is highly reprehensible. Reports of inhumane behavior towards the girl are emerging, as was done in the Nirbhaya gang rape case. Such incidents, which occur regularly in girls in the state, it shows that Shivraj Singh Chouhan's government has completely failed to provide security for our sisters and daughters."
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