The 19-year-old brother of a minor girl who was molested by a conductor in an Orange “Cluster scheme” bus near Mandi House in the heart of the city on Saturday night has been arrested at Khayala in West Delhi for allegedly sexually assaulting her.
The victim revealed the trauma she underwent at the hands of her brother during counselling that was conducted after the police rescued her and arrested conductor Ranjit Singh for molesting her in the moving bus. The victim alleged that about three years ago, she left home and started living at a juvenile care centre being run by a non-government organisation at Tughaqabad in South Delhi to evade sexual exploitation by her brother.
The girl returned home nearly six months ago thinking that her brother would have changed his ways. However, his atrocities on her continued unabated. “On Saturday evening she had heated exchange with her parents as her father had married for the third time a few days ago against her wishes. She then left her residence and boarded a bus for Lajpat Nagar where she planned to take shelter in an orphanage,” said a police officer.
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When she did not return home, her father lodged a kidnapping case at the Khayala police station.
Based on the victim’s statement, the West Delhi Police invoked provisions pertaining to rape and arrested the brother.
The traumatised victim was rescued by a police team which spotted her in the bus plying on Route 410 from Khayala Resettlement Colony to Jal Vihar Terminal at Mandi House around 11 p.m. on Saturday. Investigations revealed that Ranjit Singh, a conductor in another bus running on the same route, molested the victim finding her alone. He was allegedly in an inebriated state.
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The incident came to light when the bus driver stopped at Mandi House to make enquiries about the route, close to a regular police picket. Two constables posted there spotted the girl weeping inside the bus and swung into action taking Ranjit into custody.