The girl was gangraped by 4 men inside a moving car. (Representational)
A former Bihar shelter home inmate, gangraped in a moving car, is a minor, a top police officer said on Tuesday.
Additional Director General of Police Jitendra Kumar said the girl's medical reports show that she is between 15 and 17 years old
Talking to reporters in Patna, Mr Kumar said, "The girl's medical examinations suggest that her age is between 15 and 17 years. During interrogation, the accused said that they had sex with the girl. Even if it was with mutual consent, it becomes immaterial and falls."
Mr Kumar added that the girl is not one of the eight former inmates of the Muzaffarpur shelter home who were recently released and reunited with their families upon a Supreme Court direction.
"We would like to point out that there has been some confusion in the social media about the girl. Many people are suggesting that she was among the eight former inmates of the Muzaffarpur shelter home recently reunited with their families. This is wrong."
"The girl had gone missing from her home in May last year and found at a railway station in Muzaffarpur. She was kept at the shelter home for a week and shifted to Mokama. Two months later she was released from the Mokama care unit and handed over to her parents", the ADG clarified.
Superintendent of Police P Jayantkant told news agency PTI that all four accused named in the FIR have been arrested.
He also pointed out at the medical reports of the girl, who claimed she was 18 years old, showed "no internal or external injury" which was unusual in a case of a sexual assault.
He, however, maintained that police was "not ruling out anything" as of now.