An elderly man has been arrested on charges of raping a minor girl in Cooch Behar district’s Mekhliganj area in North Bengal, the police said on Sunday.The girl studying in Class 6 had gone to the riverbank to collect firewood, where the elderly man, whom she affectionately called grandfather, assaulted her. The matter came to light on Saturday, and based on the complaint lodged by the family of the minor girl, the police arrested the accused person.
According to police sources, the incident occurred on Thursday. A minor girl had gone to the riverbank in Jamaldah in Mekhliganj to collect firewood. It is alleged that a 63-year-old man, Sheimutun Miyan, threatened her with a sharp weapon and then raped her.
A local woman later rescued the girl and took her home. The girl told the media persons, “I was putting up clothes for drying at the riverbank. Then the grandfather called me. He said there was firewood there. After that, he threatened me and raped me.”