School girls molested in speeding vehicle, all accused arrested
Gujarat police arrested the owner of a pickup van and booked five others, including the driver
Updated: Jan 6th, 2024
Updated on Jan 6, at 7.05 p.m.
Sankheda police, on Jan 5, got hold of another absconder in the case, which saw six schoolgirls harassed in a speeding pickup van. Upon getting hold of Paresh Bhil, the sixth accused, all the men booked in this case were then produced in court.
Updated on Jan 4, at 11.25 a.m.
Sankheda police have arrested one accused out of six who harassed six schoolgirls in a speeding pickup van on Jan 2.
Following the incident, which took place on Sankheda-Bodeli Road, police have lodged an FIR under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO Act) and also on charges of robbery and molestation under the IPC against six persons, including the driver.
One of the accused, the vehicle owner, Ashwin Bhil, has been arrested, and five people, including the driver, Suresh Bhil, are absconding, said the district superintendent of police (SP), Imtiyaz Shaikh.
While Ashwin started harassing the girls and snatching cash and belongings from them in the running van, driver Suresh did not stop the van.
A complaint from a 17-year-old among the girls has been registered, and various teams of police are investigating the matter.
Teams of the deputy superintendent of police and the local crime branch are also investigating the matter.
Updated on Jan 3, 4.30 p.m.
n a small town in Chhotaudepur district, schoolgirls who were returning home were allegedly molested by the private vehicle driver on the evening of Jan 2.
The Gujarat police today arrested the owner of a pickup van and booked five others, including the driver, for sexually assaulting and molesting minor school girls in a vehicle, as per latest news reports.
What happened?
The incident took place when six girls were waiting for the public transport bus after their school in Kosindra village on the evening of Jan 2.
After a while, they opted to take a lift from a private vehicle, as the bus to reach their destination - Kundiya - was nowhere to be seen.
They took a lift in a private vehicle which had three people sitting next to the driver’s seat and another two were in the backseat. The girls sat in the back row of the vehicle.
In an unforeseen turn of events, the driver sped up the vehicle and the people who were already seated in the back and in the front seat gathered in the seat with the girls and started touching them inappropriately.
The girls shouted out of fear, and the driver accelerated even faster.
The girls then jumped out of the vehicle to save themselves, which was travelling at high speed, injuring themselves severely.
The injured were admitted to Nasvadi government hospital. Two were seriously injured and shifted to another hospital.
Following this, out of fear of getting caught, the vehicle driver sped it up further, eventually the vehicle toppled.
Parents of the girls and police reached the hospital, and investigations are underway after taking statements from the girls.
