A nationwide outrage was sparked by the rape and murder of an 8-year-old in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua.
Three young girls were raped and four other minors were sexually assaulted in seven separate incidents in Uttar Pradesh, news reports said on Sunday. The string of cases come amid heightened national sensitivity over rapes and murders of minors that have sparked widespread protests and criticism of the government. The three rapes were reported in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur, Amroha and Kannauj districts and a fourth one was reported on Tuesday in Muzaffarnagar. In Rampur and Amroha districts, the suspects in the crimes were juveniles themselves between ages 11 and 12.
In Kannauj, a man raped his 11-year-old niece when her family was not at home.
In Moradabad and Muzaffarnagar, three separate incidents of sexual assault on two girls and one boy were reported.
All the incidents, barring one, occurred just hours after
the centre cleared
an ordinance amending the existing law, which protects minors from sexual offences, by allowing
the death penalty for offenders who rape girls under 12.
In Rampur and Amroha districts, which are around 60 km away from each other, the juvenile accused have been caught.
In Rampur, the father of the 7-year-old who was raped alleged that a man seduced the girl and raped her in a forest area, according to news agency ANI. The man then fled the scene of the crime after the girl became unconscious, according to a top police official. The police official said that the suspect was later arrested.
"The accused has been arrested and a case has been registered against him. We are investigating the matter. The girl is now in the hospital for medical treatment," Vipin Tada, Rampur district's Superintendent of Police told ANI.
In Amroha district, a 5-year-old girl was allegedly raped. It is unclear as of now, as to where and by whom the minor was raped.
News agency PTI said that a medical examination of the girls was conducted in both cases.
In Muzaffarnagar district, one incident of rape and two separate incidents of sexual assaults have been reported.
A 13-year-old girl was allegedly raped by a doctor in a Muzaffarnagar clinic. The rape occurred after the girl visited the doctor's clinic on Tuesday. The 13-year-old had visited the doctor's clinic because she had a headache. The girl's family said that she came back from the clinic after two days, in an inebriated state. The family then proceeded to file a police complaint.
According to the police, the doctor had drugged the girl and then raped her. The police also said they had found "objectionable items" in the doctor's clinic, though the nature of these items was not made clear.
"The minor has been sent for medical examination. She was drugged by the accused and then he sexually assaulted her. The accused has been arrested. During the investigation, we found some objectionable items in the clinic and we are questioning him further," Ajay Sehdev, a top police official, told ANI.
In a different incident in Muzaffarnagar,
a 9-year-old boy was sexually assaulted on Saturday night by a man. The man took the 9-year-old to a secluded area in a forest and then assaulted him.
The accused managed to escape from the spot and the police have launched a search operation to arrest him, according to news agency PTI.
A 15-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted on Saturday night at a village near Muzaffarnagar when she was alone at her house.
According to the police, the suspect was arrested by them and has been charged.
A man raped his niece in the Vishnugarh area of Kannauj district when the girl's family was not at home. The police are searching for the man, said news agency PTI.
In Moradabad district, three persons barged into a minor's home, sexually assaulted her and filmed the incident. News agency PTI reported saying the minor used to be harassed by the men earlier as well.
An unidentified man attempted to sexually harass a 11-year-old Dalit minor in Moradabad district's Sambhal town, and when she resisted, tried to strangle her. The girl managed to flee the spot and was subsequently admitted to a hospital.
The police is trying to ascertain the identity of the man, according to PTI.
The incidents in Uttar Pradesh come at a time when there is
a nationwide outrage, sparked by
the rape and murder of an 8-year-old in
Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua in January this year. Last week, allegations of rape against a BJP lawmaker in Uttar Pradesh led to his arrest - almost an year after the 16-year-old said she had been raped.