The man allegedly lured the child into his room, promising a soft drink; police say no injuries found on the girl.
Police said the accused and the girl's family were known to each other. (Creative Commons)
Even as Kerala is yet to get over the shock of the brutal rape and murder of a five-year-old girl in Aluva, the Malappuram police arrested a 36-year-old labourer from Madhya Pradesh for allegedly sexually assaulting his neighbour’s four-year-old daughter.
Identifying the accused as Ram Mahesh Khushwaha of Gwalior, police said he had lured the girl into his room, promising her a soft drink.
The accused and the girl’s family were living in the same building at Challeri in Tirurangadi town and were close to each other.
The police said Khushwaha and the girl’s family had known each other ever since the latter moved into the building five months ago.
Tirurangadi Police Station House Officer Sreenivasan KT said the accused reportedly went to the family’s room and convinced the girl to go with him to his room on Thursday, 3 August.
The incident came to light when the survivor ran back crying and confided in her mother. The woman, also from Madhya Pradesh, immediately informed the police.
“He was taken into custody yesterday itself. A POCSO case has been registered after the child identified the accused in a photo,” Sreenivasan told South First.
“There are no complaints registered under his name in our station limits. We are checking if he was charged with any cases in his home state. The child suffered no physical injuries and is currently under her mother’s care at the hospital,” he added.
In the gruesome Aluva incident, too, the accused was the girl’s neighbour.
He took her to a secluded place behind the Aluva market, where she was allegedly violated and murdered on 28 July.
Her body was found the next day, and the accused, Ashfaq Alam of Bihar, was arrested. The girl’s family, too, was from Bihar.
