The 10-year-old rape survivor, who was found under a mat from a madrasa in Ghaziabad a day after she was abducted on 21 April, broke her silence on Tuesday.
She said the nabbed youth Shahbaz Khan abducted her, took her to the madrasa, and raped her. She further said that after she was brought to the madrasa, maulvi Ghulam Shahid came to her and threatened her that if she cried for help or tried to flee, her family’s lives would be in danger.
The maulvi had been arrested on Friday by the Delhi Police crime branch for failing to report the crime despite knowing about it. Shahbaz, too, was arrested after he confessed to the crime. He was first considered to be a juvenile, however a bone ossification test proved that he is not.
What Happened on 21 April?
The rape survivor said she first received a phone call from her friend, whom she knew for only a few months and was her neighbour in Ghaziabad. She told The Quint that she was waiting for her mother to return home that afternoon when she received a call again from the same number, only this time it was the friend’s brother, Shahbaz, on the other end of the line.
He told me my friend is with him, and they want to meet me near the park in my house. I thought I will go meet them and get some ice-cream and chips too, in that excuse. When I went there I saw only my friend’s brother was there. I asked him where my friend is, he told me she is waiting a little ahead. On my refusal to go along with him, he first lured me with chocolates and then dragged me into an auto.Rape Survivor
She said on the way she got a call from her father on her phone and the boy, to avoid any suspicion, asked her to take the call and tell her father she is out to buy some things from the market.
Later, when she reached the madrasa, her mother called but this time the boy disconnected the call and took away her phone. She said she was taken to the second floor of the madrasa and hidden behind logs of wood.
Was the Maulvi Involved in the Crime?
Further narrating her ordeal, the 10-year-old told The Quint that the maulvi had full knowledge of her presence in the madrasa. She said he even intimidated her.
The maulvi told me to keep shut else my life and my family’s life would be in danger.Rape Survivor
She went onto say that after sometime some kids who lived and studied at the madrasa came up to the terrace and found her. Horrified, they questioned Shahbaz who asked them to keep shut as well. She told The Quint, “The children refused to listen to him and told him that if he doesn’t send me back, they would do it themselves. He then beat them up badly which scared them away.”
However, when The Quint visited the dimly lit madrasa on 30 April, none of the kids were to be found there. The neighbours said they had gone for a lunch break but even after about an hour, nobody came back to the place. The identity or location of the kids could not be ascertained as of now.
‘I Woke up with Bruises and Wet Clothes’
The girl said after the kids were shooed away, Shahbaz brought a packet of biscuit, a blanket and a bottle of water.
“Immediately after I drank the water, I fell asleep. In the middle of the night, when I woke up, I put some water on my face and because I was feeling very thirsty I drank the same water the boy had given me and once again I dozed off,” she said.
The next morning when I woke up, I had bruises on my hands and legs. My clothes were also wet and I had an excruciating pain in my body.Rape Survivor
She further said that the boy had come and given her fresh clothes to wear in the morning and discarded her old clothes. She said, “He directed me to take a bath after which he hid me behind a pile of woods and mats and disappeared for the day.”
A little over 24 hours since her abduction, the police arrived and rescued her.
At night, the police came and took me out from the pile of woods. My friend’s brother was also there.Rape Survivor
Call Records Helped the Police Track My Daughter: Father of the Rape Survivor
When the minor did not pick up her parents’ calls on 21 April, her father immediately called 100 and complained.
From the CCTV footage captured near the house, the girl was last seen with the boy. The father of the survivor told The Quint, “The police checked my daughter’s phone records and the location from where the last call was received. That helped them identify the culprit.”
He said the police had initially nabbed three boys who led them to the Shahbaz who ultimately confessed to his crime and took the police to the madrasa where the girl was kept. Earlier, the survivor’s uncle had told The Quint that the police had initially questioned six boys but arrested only Shahbaz.
Reiterating what the girl’s uncle had earlier told The Quint, the father said, “This is not a communal matter. They are criminals and a rape is a rape.”
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)