Commuters travelling to Nashik from Mumbai were stranded for over 3 hours on the highway.
Highlights
- Highway blocked, vehicles burned in protests since last night
- Hundreds of commuters travelling to Nashik from Mumbai stranded
- Protesters even set fire to the home of the 17-year-old accused
There were angry protests in Nashik in Maharashtra today after a five-year-old was allegedly raped by a 17-year-old boy on Saturday.
The National Highway 3, Mumbai-Agra highway, was blocked for nearly the whole day by a section of protesters, who even set several police vehicles on fire since last night.
Hundreds of commuters travelling to Nashik from Mumbai were stranded for hours on the highway. With no supplies in hand, they are a worried lot.
Nandkishore Dhande, a resident of Kalyan, who was taking his aged mother to visit a doctor in Nashik, was among the many commuters requesting the police for help. "My mother has fractured her leg, she needs to use the washroom but we are stuck here for two hours now. Please help us," he said.
Protests had broken out in pockets of Nashik, with some of the protesters even setting fire to the home of the 17-year-old accused, who has now been arrested.
The incident comes three months after a 14-year-old girl was gang-raped and murdered in Ahmednagar district's Khopardi. It triggered silent protests across the state.