Chattisgarh Police Arrest Self-Styled Godman, Four Aides for Abducting, Raping Minors

Two minors were allegedly abducted and raped in Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh. The police have apprehended a self-styled godman in connection with the case.

Bilaspur (Chattisgarh): Two minors were allegedly abducted and raped by a self-styled godman and his four aides in the Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh, Ratnapur Police said on Friday.

According to a police official, the accused had allegedly enticed the 14-year-old girls' parents into participating in a holy ritual in exchange for an abundance of cash.

Archana Jha, Superintendent of Police (SP), Bilaspur district, said the accused self-styled godman, Kuleshwar Singh Rajput alias Kumar alias Pandit Thakur and his abettors Ganesh Sahu (52), Dhania Banjare (42), Kanhaiya (40) and a woman, Hulsi Ratre (30) were arrested on Friday.

Police said that the five accused have been taken into custody under sections 366 (A) (abduction of minor girls), 376 (rape) of the Indian Penal Code and other pertinent sections of the The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act.

The SP said that Banjare and Ratre met the parents of the victims and enticed them to travel to Bilaspur to participate in the Rajput ceremony in exchange for a lump sum reward. The two took the girls and their families to Sahu's residence, which is located within the boundaries of the Ratanpur police station on January 11.

Rajput sexually assaulted the minor girls there and showered Rs 4,000 on one girl and Rs 2,000 on the other, the SP said. The miscreants also threatened to kill the girls and their family members if they disclosed the incident to anybody.

The SP added that Banjare and Ratre hailed from the Sarangrah-Bilaigarh district, while Rajput and Sahu were residents of Bilaspur.