15-year-old blood cancer survivor raped twice in a span of few hours

In a horrific incident, a 15-year-old blood cancer survivor was allegedly raped twice within a span of few hours on late Saturday night (9 December) in the outskirts of Lucknow, the capital city of the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

The girl was first raped by her neighbour named Shubham and his friend Sumit, police told Hindustan Times newspaper. She was again raped by a passer-by, whose help she had sought to reach home.

According to the police, the incident took place when the girl stepped out of her home around 8.30 pm to buy groceries from a nearby market.

"While the girl, a patient of initial stage blood cancer, was on her way, an acquaintance told her he would drop her to the market on his bike. But instead of the market, he took her to an abandoned small bridge, where he and one of his friends allegedly raped her and left her on the roadside," a police officer was quoted as saying by the Indian Express newspaper.

"When the girl was trying to get to her home, at around 11 pm, one Virendra Yadav (38), who was passing by on his Bullet bike, offered to help her and drop her home. The girl accepted his offer. However, he instead took the minor to the roadside, raped her and left her there," the officer added.

The victim who somehow managed to reach home narrated the incident to her parents and her father eventually lodged a complaint.

The girl is undergoing treatment at a hospital and is currently in a stable condition.

A case of gang-rape has been registered under sections of the Indian Penal Code and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), police said.

While Virendra Yadav has been arrested, the search is on to nab the other two accused, police officer Lalta Prasad Singh told News18.