Man held for assaulting minor daughter in Visakhapatnam

A horrifying incident came to light in Visakhapatnam, where a girl was sexually assaulted by her father. According to sources, the accused is a resident of Railway New Colony under IV Town police station limits.

The 35-year-old man works in a private company as an electrician. His wife succumbed to cancer in 2016. Since then, he has been looking after his daughter. The fourteen-year-old was admitted to a hospital after she complained of severe stomach ache. The doctors confirmed that she is pregnant and informed the same to the IV Town police since the girl is a minor. 

Reportedly, the accused forced his daughter, who is a class VIII student in Visakhapatnam, into submission and repeatedly assaulted her sexually over the last few months. Upon receiving the information, the IV Town Police took the man into custody and filed cases against him under various sections of rape and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Later on, the case was transferred to Disha Police Station.

In a bid to provide speedy justice for victims (women and children) of harassment and sexual assault, the Disha Police Station was conceptualised in Andhra Pradesh, under the POCSO Act, 2012, and Disha Act, 2019. The Act rules that trial in such cases needs to be completed within 14 days and the verdict must be pronounced within 21 days.

Earlier in March, two minor girls – aged 14 and 17 were allegedly gang-raped by five people in Sunkarametta in Visakhapatnam district. A probe was launched into the alleged gang rape incident after their parents approached the Araku police in Visakhapatnam to register a complaint.