A girl was raped at a government-funded residential training centre, police said.
A 17-year-old girl staying at a government-funded residential training centre for differently-abled children was raped and five other inmates were molested allegedly by the caretaker of the facility in Chhattisgarh's Jashpur district, police said on Friday.
A watchman of the centre was also allegedly involved in molesting the victims, they said, adding both the accused have been arrested.
The incident took place on September 22 in the residential training centre for ''divyangs'' (people with disability) and after receiving information in this regard on Thursday night, police swung into action, police official Vijay Agrawal said.
The district's additional superintendent of police (ASP) along with a team of women personnel was sent to the centre for investigation during which it came to light that one inmate was sexually assaulted and five other girls, aged 14 to 16 years, were molested, he said.
Based on the investigation, the accused caretaker of the centre and its watchman, both aged 33, were arrested and two separate cases were registered in this connection, he said.
In one case, the accused caretaker of the facility was booked under sections 376 (rape) and 354 (molestation) of the IPC and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Agrawal said.
In the second case, both the accused were charged under IPC section 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) and also the POCSO Act, he said, adding further investigation was underway.
The incident comes as a grim reminder of the sexual assault on at least 15 minor inmates of a residential school for tribal girls in Jhaliyamari village of Kanker district in 2013.
The incident had sparked an outrage, prompting the then BJP government to order inspection of all residential schools and hostels in the state.
As many as eight people, including two officials of the education department and as many teachers, were arrested in the Jhaliyamari case.