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A post-mortem was conducted on a five-month-old dead foetus, delivered prematurely by a 17-year-old girl, Tuesday morning after the minor mother informed the hospital that she had become pregnant following a sexual assault in Jogeshwari(East). The DNA samples from the mother and the foetus have been collected to facilitate identification of the accused and a case against the latter, still unknown, has been registered under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code at Meghwadi police station.
On February 1, the Jogeshwari-based girl was admitted in civic-run Dr R N Cooper Hospital following complaints of stomach ache. “The doctors found out that she was five-months pregnant and the baby died during premature birth. On questioning, she confessed that she had been raped,” said sub-inspector Vilas Deshpande, adding that the girl in her statement mentioned that “she did not identity the accused”.
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The minor in her statement said that she was playing in an open ground near her house in August last year when a man forced a handkerchief on her mouth and she became unconscious. “On waking up she discovered that she had been sexually assaulted but chose to remain tight-lipped,” Patil added. According to a doctor from the gynecology department, the victim had visited a quack for medical help without disclosing anything to her family.
The head of gynecology department at the hospital, Dr Ganesh Shinde, told the Newsline, “In such cases, the health of the mother can suffer if she chooses to not visit a hospital. The issue is rampant amongst uneducated classes where females do not recognise the signs of pregnancy.”
The minor is currently recuperating in Cooper hospital’s labour ward where she underwent a delivery on Sunday. According to treating doctors, she is stable and out of danger. The police will now start questioning in her neighbourhood and test DNA samples of those suspected to have assaulted her.
Dr Nikhil Dattar, head of forensics at Cooper hospital, said minor rape cases continue to be prevalent in the city. “This is just the tip of the iceberg. Most of the victims do not visit public hospitals fearing police involvement,” he said.
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