The accused, who is also the girl's paternal uncle, had been assaulting her for a long time.
Highlights
- Girl, raped allegedly by her stepfather, is three months pregnant
- Abortion not allowed after 20 weeks of pregnancy, doctors say it's unsafe
- Man has been arrested and case of rape has been registered against him
A 10-year-old has been found in an advanced condition of pregnancy after being
raped repeatedly, allegedly by her stepfather, in Haryana's Rohtak. She is expected to give birth in another four months and doctors are yet to decide if she can undergo an abortion. This was the second horror that unfolded within 24 hours in Rohtak, Haryana. On Saturday, the
body of a 23-year-old was found in a vacant plot - she had been gang-raped, run over by a car and her head was smashed with a rock.
The mother of the 10-year-old - who works as a domestic help -- had taken her to a doctor after suspecting that the girl was pregnant. The family is from Bihar and the girl -- third of four children -- was often left at home when her mother went to work.
The child had told her that she was repeatedly raped for days and her stepfather had warned her to keep quiet about it. Her stepfather also happens to be her father's brother and hence her uncle. The man has been arrested and a case of rape has been registered.
The girl is admitted in a local government hospital. The medical board of Rohtak's Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences will meet today to decide on the child's condition. Medical termination of pregnancy is not allowed after 20 weeks since doctors do not consider it safe.
The incident comes to light a day after the body of a 23-year-old woman was found who has been dubbed Haryana's Nirbhaya. The body found from a vacant plot in Rohtak's Industrial Model Township (IMT), shows the woman had been sedated and gangraped. Initial medical examination suggests that she had been violated with foreign objects. Later, her head was smashed with a brick to stop identification and the body was run over by a vehicle.
The brutality of the murder has shocked the state's politicians. Chief Minister ML Khattar called the crime "unfortunate" and declared that the guilty will not be spared.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi said the "savage and bone chilling incident had shocked the conscience of the nation, reminding each one of us about the crying need of revisiting the important issue of women's safety and security".