A 57-year-old government official has been arrested for raping a six-year-old Dalit girl in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr and then committing bestiality with a goat. The survivor’s family said the man used to frequent the village for official work and entered their house when he saw that the girl was playing in the courtyard with the child of a neighbour and no adult was present.
The rape as well as the bestiality was recorded by the neighbour’s child, who is about the same age as the girl. Officials said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has taken note of the heinous crime, the official has been suspended and the state government has announced an assistance of Rs 8.25 lakh to the girl’s family.
Police officials said Gajendra Singh, a resident of Rasoolpur village, is posted as the Agriculture Development Officer (Agriculture Protection) in the Shikarpur block. On Monday evening, he went to a village in Ahmedgarh police station area where he saw the girl and the boy playing in the courtyard of the house and went and sat on a cot there.
Senior Superintendent of Police (Bulandshahr) Shlok Kumar said, “Singh entered the house of the girl around 5 pm on Monday. The girl’s family was known to him. He raped the girl and then had unnatural sex with a goat that was tied nearby. A boy captured the crime on his phone. Singh has been arrested. Since he is a government official, he has also been suspended and a departmental inquiry is being conducted.”
Mr Kumar said the police will seek a speedy trial and make all efforts to ensure that Singh is punished.
The girl’s father said he and his wife were working on a farm when the incident took place. The girl and the boy told them what had happened and they registered a police complaint on Tuesday morning.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath directed Mr Kumar and the District Magistrate to go to the village, meet the survivor’s family and aid with the investigation. The government has also announced assistance of Rs 8.25 lakh under three different heads to the family.
(With inputs from Sameer Ali)
