16-Year-Old Girl's Gang Rape Video Shared On Social Media, 2 Accused Arrested

Two men have been arrested in India for allegedly raping a 16-year-old girl. The incident, which occurred about two months ago, came to light after a video of the gang rape was posted on social media.

On Wednesday, the girl's father came across the purported video of the sexual assault, which was allegedly uploaded by the accused. The girl's mother later filed a complaint with the police in the state of Uttar Pradesh. The mother told the police her daughter had tried to kill herself following the sexual assault, which took place on May 22.

The girl did not tell her parents about her ordeal, fearing the video would be posted online, the police told media outlet The Times of India. The accused were arrested Thursday and charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act.

“We also got the video. The medico-legal examination on the girl was done. The report is awaited. Now, the girl will be presented in a court to record her statement under section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC),” police officer Sanjeev Kumar Bajpai reportedly said.

Initially, the authorities said only one of the accused, identified as Akash, was arrested while his co-offender had absconded, Outlook India reported, citing Press Trust of India.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau's "Crime in India" 2019 report, Uttar Pradesh is one of the states with the maximum number of cases of atrocities against women. In 2019, 3,065 rape cases were registered in the state.

Last month, a 5-year-old girl was allegedly gangraped by three minor boys in a secluded place near her home in Uttar Pradesh. The girl was playing outside her home when the boys dragged her away and sexually assaulted her. They then recorded the act on a mobile phone. The three accused in the case were later taken into custody. “The three boys were detained and later produced before the Juvenile Justice Board which sent them to a correctional home. We have seized the cellphone which was used to record the crime,” Additional Superintendent of Police Prasad Singh told local media at the time.