Bhubaneswar: Odisha police arrested Chandrapal Kushwaha, 26, from Jhansi district of Uttar Pradesh in connection with the alleged trafficking and repeated sexual assault of a minor tribal girl from Odisha’s Dhenkanal district. The accused was produced in court and sent to judicial custody on Saturday.Police said Kushwaha was apprehended from Patha village under Erach police station limits in Jhansi on June 3 and brought to Odisha on transit remand. “We interrogated him regarding the case. Investigation into the role of other accused is underway,” said police officer Jitendra Mallick, who is associated with the probe.On May 30, police arrested Binay Patra, 46, for allegedly trafficking the 17-year-old girl to Uttar Pradesh two years ago on the pretext of providing her a job in Bhubaneswar. Investigators said Patra allegedly sold her to Jhansi resident Asish Yadav.According to police and the survivor’s statement, the girl, whose parents are daily-wage labourers, sought work due to her family’s poor financial condition. She alleged that after being taken to Jhansi, she was confined to a room and repeatedly raped by Yadav and his father for around three months. The girl further alleged that she became pregnant due to the assaults and was forced to undergo an abortion arranged by Yadav’s family.Police said the survivor later alleged that Yadav sold her to Kushwaha for Rs 50,000. She told investigators that Kushwaha and his family members allegedly sexually assaulted her for nearly two years while threatening her against escaping.The girl eventually managed to flee with the help of a local lawyer in Jhansi, who reportedly took her to district headquarters. She returned to Odisha on May 22 and lodged a complaint with Dhenkanal police the following day. Police registered a case immediately and formed teams to investigate the allegations in Uttar Pradesh.Meanwhile, the National Human Rights Commission has taken suo motu cognisance of media reports on the case. The commission issued notices to the DGPs of Odisha and Uttar Pradesh, along with the Dhenkanal district magistrate, seeking a detailed report within two weeks on the progress of the investigation and measures taken for the survivor’s relief and rehabilitation.
