India: 6-Year-Old Girl Allegedly Raped by Cousin Dies in Delhi

A six-year-old Indian girl died in Delhi on Monday after she was allegedly raped by her minor cousin in northern India just over two weeks ago.

The girl, who Indian media have described as “mentally challenged,” was allegedly raped by her maternal cousin, also a minor, in Aligarh, a city in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, two to three weeks ago.

She was a resident of the village of Jatoyi in the Sadabad area of Hathras, located about 20 miles south of Aligarh, but was living in Aligarh at the time of the alleged rape “with her maternal aunt after her mother died last year,” according to the Indian newspaper the Tribune.

“After battling for life for nearly three weeks, the victim passed away on Monday during treatment. She was later cremated by her family,” the Hathras Superintendent of Police, Vineet Jaiswal, was quoted as saying.

Asian News International Uttar Pradesh (ANI UP) posted a statement to its Twitter account on Tuesday attributed to Jaiswal:

A minor girl belonging to Jatoyi village of Sadabad area in Hathras was allegedly raped 15-20 days ago by her minor cousin, who is mentally unstable, during her stay in Aligarh. Victim passed away yesterday during treatment & was cremated by her family.

“A case has been registered under various sections against girl’s minor cousin at Iglas Police Station in Aligarh district. Accused has been arrested and produced in a Juvenile court by Aligarh Police and they are taking further action in this case,” ANI further quoted Jaiswal as saying.

Prior to the alleged perpetrator’s arrest on Tuesday, the girl’s family had staged demonstrations pleading for her cousin’s arrest, and Aligarh’s Senior Superintendent of Police, G. Muniraj, had “suspended the [Police] Station House Officer of Iglas [section of Aligarh] for laxity in arresting the accused,” according to the Tribune.

The girl’s “family placed the minor’s body at the Sadabad-Baldev road and staged a demonstration, demanding arrest of the accused and family and also the guilty police personnel [sic],” the newspaper reported on Tuesday, alluding to the local police department’s possible mishandling of the case.

The girl’s alleged rape comes shortly after news last week that another Hathras resident, a 19-year-old woman, died from injuries sustained during an alleged gang rape in the village.