In a major development in the Jamui harassment case, the main accused Nandan Yadav was injured in a reported half-encounter with Bihar Police.
The accused was shot in the leg during the incident, News 18 reported. He was admitted to a hospital for treatment.
The encounter took place during an operation to apprehend Yadav.
The arrest comes days after a minor girl and boy were stopped by a group of men while returning from coaching classes in Bihar’s Jamui.
The students were allegedly surrounded, questioned and subjected to assault and molestation. A video showed a group of men harassing and groping a minor girl who was on her way back from tuition with her male friend on a scooter. The clip went viral on social media.
Videos showed that the men assaulted the girl and her male friend. The entire incident lasted about 15-20 minutes before they were allowed to leave.
About three suspects in the case have already been arrested after about seven perpetrators were identified using video analysis. “Although the incident is two days old, no complaint was made before us by the boy or the girl till Sunday. Today, when the video went viral, we traced the victims with the help of the registration number of a vehicle visible in the clip”, Jamui SP Bishwajeet Dayal told reporters.
The two had left their coaching classes in Jamui town on a motorbike and visited a nearby spot to take photographs. They were attacked by the group of men on Saturday evening.
The incident received backlash. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi called the incident “deeply disturbing” and demanded that the persons identified in the video be prosecuted under the POCSO Act.
Bihar police have registered FIR’s against 120 social media accounts for allegedly revealing the identity of the minor girl and her friend. Steps have been initiated to remove the videos from social media.
