Bhiwandi: Police have successfully tracked down and arrested an 18-year-old man who allegedly sexually assaulted a seven-year-old girl in his rented flat in Bhiwandi taluka, within two hours of the official complaint being registered. The girl is undergoing treatment at a sub-district hospital, said police.On Thursday afternoon, the girl and her 10-year-old brother were playing outside her building, when the accused lured them away with the promise of buying them snacks, police said. He gave the brother a Rs 50 note and told him to buy a bottle of water, and allegedly dragged the girl to his rented flat nearby. He tied her up, gagged her, and sexually assaulted her, police claimed. The girl managed to return home in the evening and narrated the ordeal to her parents, who rushed to Narpoli police station and filed a complaint.A police team was immediately set up under the direct guidance of deputy commissioner of police Pawan Bansod and assistant commissioner of police Sachin Sangle. Led by senior police inspector Vijay Kadbane, the team launched a massive manhunt, and tracked down the fleeing suspect and placed him under arrest within two hours. He was booked on charges of rape under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.As news of the brutal sexual assault spread through the neighbourhood, hundreds of residents converged outside the police station at night and demanded strict punishment for the accused. A heavy police deployment had to be rushed to the spot to maintain law and order and pacify the protesting crowd. Police promised the protesters an airtight investigation to ensure swift justice.
