Capital crime: Delhi shames nation again with rape of 5-year-old

Barely four months after the shocking gang-rape of a 23-year-old paramedical student in Delhi, a five-year-old baby girl in the national capital was brutally raped by her neighbor who held her captive for four days.

The child has undergone critical surgery at the Swami Dayanand Hospital in the city and has since been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on public demand.

The child, who was subjected to the worse brutalities by the molester, is currently in the intensive care unit of the AIIMS.

The child was in a serious condition when she was rescued from the flat, police said, adding that she was rescued when members of her family heard her screams on Wednesday evening.

The girl's mother said the child went out to play and was kidnapped. "The man then locked her up in his room and raped her. I want justice from the government," she said.

Doctors who attended to the child said the molester had even inserted objects like candle sticks and bottles into the private parts of the child.

"Upon examination, we found a 200 ml bottle and two or three pieces of candle inserted into her private parts. This is the first time that I have seen such barbarism with a five-year-old," RK Bansal, medical superintendent, Swami Dayanand Hospital, told reporters.

"There were injuries on her lips and cheeks and bruise marks on her neck, suggesting that attempts were made to strangle her. The blood pressure was way below normal, and she had fever when she was admitted," the doctor said.

"The child's condition is very critical. She is in ICU right now and will be under observation for the next 24-48 hours," he said.

In yet another shocker, the child's father has alleged that a policeman tried to bribe him with Rs2,000 to keep quiet, saying he should thank God that the child was alive.

The police were initially reluctant to file a rape case and they also delayed locating her, the victim's family alleged.

Meanwhile, scores of protestors assembled outside the hospital in East Delhi where the girl was undergoing treatment.

The Delhi Police, as usual, launched a hunt for the accused and the Delhi authorities have ordered immediate arrest of the culprit.