Patna, Sep 24 — Days after a similar incident of alleged molestation came to light in Bihar's Jamui, another video showing a minor girl has surfaced from Samastipur.
After the circulation of the video on social media, police arrested four accused in connection with the case.
Union Minister and Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas leader Chirag Paswan on Thursday condemned the Samastipur incident and demanded strict action against everyone found involved.
Describing the incident as shameful and unfortunate, Paswan said such acts raise serious questions about law and order and the accountability of the administration.
He also expressed concern over what he described as the growing boldness of criminals and urged authorities to identify every person involved and take stringent legal action.
Paswan went further and called for the accused in the Samastipur case to face a police encounter, referring to the police action against an accused in the earlier Jamui case.
He urged the state government to take similarly stringent action, saying that such measures would reinforce the fear of the law among criminals.
According to the police, the video came to their attention during social media monitoring on the evening of September 23.
After technical examination, investigators identified the location as an embankment road near Jagatsinghpur village under the Karpurigram police station area.
Police said the incident had occurred earlier on September 15, although the exact circumstances were initially being verified.
As the identity of the girl could not immediately be established, a case was registered at Karpurigram police station on September 24 on the basis of a police official's statement.
The police subsequently identified all four accused and arrested them within around six hours of receiving information about the incident.
The accused have been identified as Vikas Sharma, Rahul Kumar Paswan, Rambabu Sahani and Awadhesh Paswan.
Police said a case has been registered under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the POCSO Act and the Information Technology Act.
Police have also appealed to the public not to circulate the video or any material that could reveal the identity of the girl, who is prima facie believed to be a minor.
Further investigation is underway.