Rape of minor girl in Lucknow deeply saddening and shameful, says Mayawati

Lucknow, Oct 12 (PTI) Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Sunday termed the rape of a minor girl in Lucknow district "deeply saddening and shameful".

In a post on X in Hindi, she said, "The gang-rape of a teenage girl in the Banthara area of the capital, Lucknow, is deeply saddening and shameful. Incidents of harassment, rape, and murder, along with harassment of women, are continuing unabated in various states across the country, including Uttar Pradesh." She also urged the government to take "effective steps" to prevent such incidents.

"Forget about women's respect, their safety is paramount," the BSP president said.

A minor Dalit student was allegedly raped by five men in the Banthara police station area on Saturday.

Police have arrested a 20-year-old man from the Harauni railway station in connection with the alleged rape, an official said on Sunday.

Two others escaped from a checkpoint in the village where a police team was stationed, the official said, even as one of them was shot in the leg.

A case has been registered under the relevant sections of the BNS and POCSO Act at the Banthara police station, the official said. PTI NAV PRK PRK