Sholavaram girl death: 1 held for molesting, 5 others for filming

CHENNAI: An eight-year-old girl died allegedly of poisoning due to snake bite near Sholavaram, 25 kms from Chennai city on Monday. A day later, police have arrested six persons, including a 75-year-old man, who allegedly molested the child three months ago.

Five youths from the neighbourhood who filmed the elderly man molesting the child were also arrested by the police.

Police sources said that the girl, an orphan was brought up by her uncle, who works in a brick kiln near Sholavaram. On Sunday night, the girl left the house to relieve herself, when she was bit by a snake. Hearing her cries, the neighbours rescued the girl and moved her to the Government Stanley hospital, where she succumbed, a day later.

Even as the girl was laid to rest, police learnt of the girl being molested by an elderly man. Youth from a nearby village who came to visit a friend recorded the video of the old man molesting the girl and had kept it among the group. The video got circulated after the girl’s death, raising suspicions on the death and the elderly man’s involvement in her death.

As the video started spreading in several Whatsapp groups, police arrested the elderly man for molesting the girl. The men, who took and shared the video- Chinnadurai (25), Baskar (20), Sathish (22), Ramesh (24) and Vijayakumar (25) were arrested and remanded in judicial custody on Tuesday. Avadi police booked the elderly man under the Pocso (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) Act and the youngsters under Sections of the IPC, including IT Act.