She sleeps sedated, amid the curfew

Her mother, her eyes swollen and tears trickling down, says: “What is there left to be said?”

Maneesha, 16, is a Class XII student. She was gangraped by 19 people on April 5. The police have arrested only 12 of them.

Those arrested include Islam Ansari, Feroz Shah, Habib Ansari and Anwar Ansari, mechanics at the motor repair shop near her father’s official residence. All the arrested persons and their families live at Charru Basti on the periphery of Bokaro.

“Whenever Maneesha crossed the shop, the Ansaris and Shah used to wink and whistle at her,” says Bokaro SP V H Deshmukh, quoting the statement given by her father.

The policesay Maneesha was taking an evening walk outside her house on April 5, she was alone. Suddenly a tempo van stopped near her, two of the three men in its back seat got down. One of them covered her mouth with his hand, they pulled her inside the van and sped off, the police say.

According to the police, she was taken to Churra Basti. For two nights and one day, she was held in a dingy two-room house of Jalaluddin Ansari.

Even though more than a fortnight has passed, the police have failed to arrest any one of the seven, including Jalaluddin, who allegedly raped her on April 5.

After she was abducted, a relative of Maneesha had reportedly informed SHO Rajesh Kumar and Dy SP Mohammad Nihal. But the police couldn’t trace her. “We were tipped off by Farooq Ali and Naushad Ali of the same basti on April 7. They said they had rescued her from the clutches of the criminals. We went there and found her in an unconscious state. We brought her to the hospital in the afternoon,” said the relative. He says thepolice refused to register a complaint on the night of April 5.

Soon Bokaro erupted. On April 9, Bokaro saw a procession taken out by the BSL Employees Union. The next day, life came to a halt with the bandh called jointly by the BJP, Samata Party, CPI, CPI-M and the Shiv Sena. They wanted the arrest of the seven absconding accused and the dismissal of Kumar and Nihal. The parties called for another bandh on April 17 and that day Bokaro witnessed communal clashes.

Three shops belonging to Muslims were set afire and two police vehicles torched allegedly by Shiv Sainiks on the bandh day. Nihal was transferred to Chatra. A shoot-at-sight order was issued, curfew clamped and five companies of paramilitary forces deployed.

“We are doing our best to nab the culprits. They will be booked soon”, says Chotanagpur IG J K Sinha who has been camping here since April 16. The police are yet to record Maneesha’s statement as she is in no state to speak. “Doctors have said we can talk to her only after she is backto normal,” says Deshmukh.