a person standing in front of a building: The police arrested Arjun Nishad and his associate Mahesh Yadav alias Chottu, who are now being sent to jail. (HT photo)© Provided by Hindustan Times The police arrested Arjun Nishad and his associate Mahesh Yadav alias Chottu, who are now being sent to jail. (HT photo)

A 17-year-old Dalit girl was allegedly kidnapped and gang-raped in eastern Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur district on the Friday. Her body was singed with cigarette butts by the two men who raped her, said the girl’s mother .

On Sunday, the police arrested Arjun Nishad and his associate Mahesh Yadav alias Chottu, who are now being sent to jail.

Shyam Deo Bind, deputy superintendent of police, Gola, said, the police have registered an FIR on the charge of kidnapping, rape against the duo under various sections of the IPC and has also charged them under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Native of a village located in the Barhalganj area of the district, the mother of the victim said, the girl worked at a brick kiln run by one Guddu Singh in Gola. The girl was staying in a rented house in Barhajpar village with her family members.

“On Friday night my daughter went out of the house to fetch water from the hand pump. When she did not return, I searched with the assistance of the villagers but failed to locate her,” said the mother.

“On Saturday morning, the villagers found my daughter lying in semi unconscious condition in a deserted house located behind a temple. She told me that while she was collecting water at the hand pump one Arjun Nishad and his associate, whio came on a motorcycle, kidnapped her. They took her to desolate spot and committed rape, when she resisted, the duo burned her body with cigarettes,” the mother added.

The victim has now been shifted to a district hospital in Gorakhpur for treatment and medical examination. Her statement will be recorded by a magistrate, SP Bind said.