Nagpur: BJP leader Ajay Yanganti from Sironcha tehsil have been arrested by the Gadchiroli police on Monday for sexually exploiting a minor girl for more than a year.
Accused BJP leader from Sironcha is said to have close relations with the District Guardian Minister Ambarish Atram who is also a BJP MLA from Aheri constituency of the district.
Assistant Inspector Rameshwar Darade, Asarali Police Station speaking to Indian Express has told: “We arrested him on Monday evening after the case was referred to us from Gadchiroli, where the girl was staying in a protection Home of District Child Welfare Committee.”
On Sunday Yanganti was at Gadchiroli under section 376 of the IPC for rape and sexually exploiting children (Prevention of Child Sexual Offence) and Prevention of Child Marriage Act.
Speaking of the incident API Tejaswini Patil of Gadchiroli police station said, “The girl, 17, was brought to Gadchiroli about a month ago after she complained of her forcible marriage by her mother at Ankisa village. She then narrated her story to the District Women and Child Welfare Officer Anil Bhadange. Bhadange, in turn, approached us with a complaint. So we registered offence against Yanganti after she gave us the statement. But since the matter belonged to Ankisa, we sent it for further action to the Asarali police station.”
Adding that, “the girl told us her mother had forcibly married her off when she was just 15. She didn’t like the man she was married to. So, she returned to her mother, who allegedly beat her up and harassed her to return to her husband. The girl then got into a hostel run by Yanganti at Asarali. Yanganti, 40, lives in Hyderabad along with his wife and children and frequents Sironcha for business work. He apparently lure the girl into a relationship promising to marry her and sexually exploited her since last year.”