Barabanki: In Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh, a 16-year-old rape survivor is said to have been pressured by local police to withdraw her complaint. The case involves 25-year-old Ankit Verma, who is accused of kidnapping and raping the teenager. Reports indicate that the accused was instructed to pay Rs 50,000 to the survivor, leading her to retract her complaint.

According to media reports, Ankit Verma abducted the girl from outside her village on August 22, 2024, and took her to a hotel in Ghaziabad where the assault continued. He left her outside her home on August 25, 2024, after her condition deteriorated, and threatened her to remain silent.

District SP Dinesh Singh confirmed the arrest of Verma and stated that Police Station In-Charge Arun Pratap Singh and officer Manoj Kumar have been removed from their positions and suspended pending a departmental investigation. Ankit’s brother, who is also accused of assaulting the girl, has been detained.

The survivor’s uncle, who has been her guardian since the murder of her father in 2018 and her mother’s subsequent suicide, reported the coerced withdrawal of the complaint.