Surat: Althan police have booked a 21-year-old man for allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl after abducting her and taking her to a room in Sachin on Saturday night. The accused has been identified as Muskan Pathan.Police said Pathan allegedly raped the girl repeatedly and threatened her not to disclose the crime to anyone. As the victim is from a Scheduled Caste community, the SC-ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act was invoked, in addition to provisions under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act. The probe has been handed over to the Surat police SC-ST cell. Pathan has been arrested. Police found that the accused owns a food cart from where the victim used to buy food. They knew each other for three years. Police said Pathan lured the minor and took her to a room in Sachin. As the room was allegedly arranged by Pathan’s brother-in-law, Halim Khan, he has also been booked as a co-accused.
