Bihar: A 40-year-old man in Bihar's Siwan district has been arrested for marrying an 11-year-old girl. A case was registered under POCSO, Section 363 IPC, and other enabling provisions against the accused. The accused identified as Mahendra Pandey was arrested and the girl has been sent back to her home.
The mother of the girl has alleged that the accused Mahendra Pandey forcefully married her daughter due to non-payment of a loan.
Refuting charges against him, the accused said that it was a trap set up by the mother to extract money from him.
Speaking on the matter, Siwan Superintendent of Police Shailesh Kumar Sinha said, "Accused Mahendra Kumar has been arrested under the POCSO Act. The minor girl has been sent for a medical examination. Further investigation in the case is underway."
"I got married with the consent of the girl and her mother. Now the girl's mother is blackmailing me. She started demanding money. There is no kind of money transaction between us. I am trapped. Some media persons are spreading false news," Mahendra Pratap said.
Meanwhile, supporting what the accused said, the minor girl informed, "Both of us got married with the consent of my mother, we want to stay together. Earlier my mother had got everything done, now she is trapping both of us."
ALSO READ | Bihar CM Nitish Kumar sidesteps query on fighting Lok Sabha poll
ALSO READ | Bomb threat in Puri-New Delhi Purushottam Express, train halted at UP's Chunar Junction, being searched
