Two arrested for abducting, raping minors

PUNE: The Paud police on Wednesday arrested two labourers, who had eloped with two minor girls, from Lavale village, in Mulshi, on April 14.
Police identified the suspects as Mangesh Kisan Pawar (26) of Mangaon in Raigad district and Rama Namdeo Pawar (23) of Pirangut in Mulshi taluka. The Paud police team led by sub-inspector Vaibhav Sonawane nabbed the suspects after a chase in Mangaon on Wednesday evening.
Vishwamber Golde, inspector of the Paud police station said that Mangesh and Rama were working as labourers at a brick kiln in Lavale. Both of them are married. Mangesh has two children, while Rama’s wife is pregnant, he said.
Golde said that on April 14, the duo eloped with two girls living in their neighbourhood. One girl was around 15-year-old, while another was 17-year-old. “We registered a case of kidnapping against the duo and began the probe,” he said.
During the investigation, sub-inspector Sonawane got information that the girls along with the suspects were in Mangaon. “When the duo saw the team approaching, they began to run away,” he said.
The police team chased the duo for about four km and then nabbed them. “We have sent the girls to Sassoon Hospital for medical examination,”said Golde.
Mangesh and Rama have been charged under sections 363 (kidnapping), 376 (rape) of the IPCode and under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.