Nagpur: A 25-year-old constable, attached to Quick Response Team (QRT), has been charged with allegedly raping a 17-year-old Class 12 student. The constable first contacted the girl on Instagram and later called her to his house.The accused, Prateek Dharpal, a resident of Mahesh Nagar on Borgaon Road, was named in an FIR registered at Gittikhadan police station after the girl was found to be pregnant. He was arrested earlier this week.According to the complaint, Dharpal first messaged the student on Instagram in 2022. He later asked for her mobile number and continued to chat with her on social media.Trusting Dharpal as he was a policeman, the girl agreed to meet him. On Aug 17, Dharpal invited her to his house on the pretext of his birthday. Once she was alone with him, he allegedly demanded sex. When she refused, Dharpal allegedly forced himself on the girl.The survivor did not immediately report the crime, fearing repercussions as Dharpal served as a cop. The rape came to the fore on Sept 22 when the student fainted in her school. The teachers took her to hospital, where doctors informed her parents that she was pregnant.The survivor narrated the ordeal to her parents, who approached Gittikhadan police station. Police registered a case and later arrested Dharpal.
