Man held for raping disabled tribal girl in Keonjhar

Keonjhar: Keonjhar police on Thursday arrested a 28-year-old man for the rape of a differently-abled minor tribal girl. A police complaint was lodged on April 6 regarding the alleged rape and a subsequent group clash.According to the allegation, the incident took place four months back. The accused is a relative of the survivor and reportedly converted to another religion some years ago and was working in Tamil Nadu. On Saturday, family members learned of her pregnancy after she fell ill and was taken to the hospital. When the family members and villagers learned that she was pregnant by a man from another community, unrest broke out on Sunday.A group of villagers allegedly vandalised a house belonging to the accused as well as a religious place. Villagers protested, demanding the immediate arrest of the accused. Police forces were deployed in the village after the clash. Later, police and local administration formed a peace committee to maintain peace and bring the situation under control. SDPO (Anandpur) Kamal Panda said a court sent the accused to judicial custody on Thursday.