Yavatmal, 12 August

A 9-year-old boy allegedly sexually assaulted a minor girl studying in his class with the help of another female classmate in the toilet of their school in Maharashtra's Yavatmal district, police said on Tuesday.

The accused boy and the 9-year-girl, who allegedly abetted the crime, have been detained and sent to a juvenile remand home, they said.

The victim, aged 8, and the two accused were students of Class 3 at a Zilla Parishad school in Babulgaon town where the alleged incident took place on 1 August, the police said.

A few days back, the victim complained of pain in her private parts following which her mother took her to a hospital. Doctors at the hospital found injuries on the victim's private parts, a police official said.

As per a police complaint lodged by the victim's mother, her daughter told her that a boy from her class assaulted her in the school toilet with the help of another girl, the official said.

The victim's mother approached the police on 9 August with a complaint against the boy and the girl and a case was subsequently registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, the police said.

Yavatmal Superintendent of Police Kumar Chintha said the police have received a complaint about a 9-year-old boy assaulting an 8-year-old girl in Babulgaon.

Another girl, aged 9, helped the boy (in the crime), he said.

The two accused children have sent to a remand home, police said.