Two youngsters nabbed under POCSO for kidnap, sexual assault of minor girl in Wayanad

Mananthavady: The Wayanad police arrested two youngsters on charges of abducting a minor girl and sexually assaulting her in the early hours of Thursday.

The accused, N Afsal (32) of Njalatt House, 34th Mile, Periya, and Sreejin P James (24) of Pariyarath House, 35th Mile, Periya, were arrested on Friday. 

​According to the police, the girl was walking home after visiting a relative when the accused, who were travelling in an autorickshaw, forcibly intercepted her and pulled her into the vehicle. They then took her to another location, where she was sexually assaulted, police said.

The accused later dropped the girl near her residence before fleeing. The incident came to light after the survivor experienced severe physical discomfort and disclosed the assault to her relatives. Based on the information provided by the girl, her family, with the help of some social workers, approached the police, following which a case was registered and an investigation launched.

The police, who identified the accused and tracked their movements, subsequently apprehended both. According to the police, both had criminal antecedents and were previously arrested in connection with drug-related offences. Apart from various sections of Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), police also invoked sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.  

The investigation was monitored by Mananthavady Station House Officer P Rafeeq, while the arrests were carried out by a team led by Sub-Inspector K K Sobin. The accused were produced before the Judicial First-Class Magistrate Court, Mananthavady, which remanded them in judicial custody. Further investigation is in progress.