Viraj Deshpande (Lokmat News Network Nagpur)
While the recent incident of sexual abuse, torture and captivity of 10-year-old girl who was burnt with lit cigarettes still makes one shudder, another case of minors being tortured has come to the fore. In the latest case, two boys, aged 4 and 5, were burnt with lit cigarettes by their mother's live-in partner.
The incident came to light after the grandmother of the children saw burn marks on the children and approached Wadi police station. Wadi police, under senior PI Pradip Rayanwar, registered a case against the 32 year old accused Rahul (name changed to protect identity of children), under relevant sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Juvenile Justice (JJ) Act. Police have also subsequently arrested the accused who works as a labourer at MIDC.
According to police, a widow, Kiran (name changed) who has two children, fell for the accused after her husband passed away. They had a live-in relationship and the children were also staying in the same house. Around 10 days back Rahul allegedly burnt the boys with cigarettes over some matter. Kiran, however, chose not to reveal this to anyone. Meanwhile, the grandmother of the boys learnt about the children being beaten up and went to Kiran's house and checked on the kids.She found burn marks on the stomach of both the children. She took the children to Wadi police station where a case was registered against Rahul.
Sources said the woman defended Rahul and said that he punished the children as they were not studying and only creating a ruckus in the house. Police on Monday produced the accused before court and procured two days custody. The incident has angered residents of the locality who have demanded strict action against the accused.