Odisha: 5 held for allegedly raping 14-year-old

Five people, including a minor, were arrested on Saturday in connection with the rape of a teenage girl in Odisha's Sambalpur district.

Out of the five arrestees, three were primarily accused of raping the girl and the other two were reportedly innocent.

Out of the two, one was a minor who witnessed the incident, while the other happened to be the 14-year-old victim's boyfriend who was accompanying her when the three accused charged in to sexually assault the teenager.

The incident took place in Sambalpur's Sasan town on Thursday.

More details are awaited as the police is investigating the matter.

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In the recent past, there has been a surge in sexual crimes against minor girls.

Taking cognizance of such crimes, President Ram Nath Kovind, on April 22, promulgated the Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance, 2018, for effective deterrence against the commission of rape.

The ordinance seeks the death penalty for the rapists of girls below 12 years of age and stringent punishment for perpetrators of rape particularly of girls below 16 years, thereby strengthening the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.