Rape by 72-year-old triggers communal flare-up in Nainital

 The peace of the renowned hill town of Nainital in Uttarakhand was disturbed late on Wednesday night when a communal flare-up was triggered by the rape of a 12-year-old girl by a 72 years old man belonging to a particular community.

PR Singh | Dehradun | May 1, 2025 :  The peace of the renowned hill town of Nainital in Uttarakhand was disturbed late on Wednesday night when a communal flare-up was triggered by the rape of a 12-year-old girl by a 72 years old man belonging to a particular community.

As the news of the shameful incident spread, agitated right-wing Hindutva outfits and local public took to the streets, pelting stones at a mosque and demanding that the police hand over the accused to them.

Soon after the registration of an FIR at the Mallital Police station of the Nainital in the night on the April 30, the news of rape of a minor girl by septuagenarian man from another community spread like wildlife in the tourism-hill town. This led to a massive agitation by local public and Hindutva activists who came out on the streets in large numbers, first at the police stations and then at Mall Road and Bus Stand.

At the police station, the crowd demanded from the police to hand out the accused.

When they persisted with their demand, the police had no option but to use force to wean out the crowd. Subsequently, the agitated crowd went on a rampage attacking and ransacking shops and vehicles at the main bus stand on the outer circle of the hill town. The protestors even pelted stones at houses and broke several windows besides damaging several parked vehicles.

Those who tried to resist the crowd were beaten up with abuses. The crowd also pelted stones at Mallital Mosque amid anti-Pakistan slogans.

However, the situation was brought under control by the police with a mild lathi charge on the crowd in the night.

The Hindu organisations alleged that the minor girl in question was sexually abused for nearly three months by the accused. According to one of their leaders, the local public had to come on the roads as the family of the victim lodged a complaint last night.

Narrating the sequence of events, PM Meena Senior Superintendent of the Police, Nainital said, “Last night, an FIR was registered at Mallital Police station of the Nainital in a rape case of a minor girl by an elderly contractor. This resulted in the protest by local youths at Mallital Police station, Mall Road and Mallital Masjid. However, the police acted swiftly and restored peace to the town, forcing the crowd to leave.”

“The police have taken strict action against the agitators and will not leave any stone unturned in bringing the accused to justice,” he assured.

Meanwhile, tourists and locals preferred to remain indoors on Thursday even as the police mentioned the situation as under control. Meena appealed to the tourists to feel free to enjoy their stays.

“At present, the situation in Nainital and Haldwani is under control. Extra forces have been deployed to maintain law and order, “ he added.