Chhattisgarh Police Rescue Missing Minor Girl, Arrest 22-Year-Old Under POCSO Act
Raipur: Under ‘Abhiyan Samvedna’, Pusaur Police on August 10 rescued a 16-year-old missing girl and arrested a 22-year-old man for alleged kidnapping and sexual assault.
Senior Superintendent of Police Shashi Mohan Singh said the girl went missing from her residence on February 18, 2026. After the family failed to trace her, relatives lodged a missing person report at Pusaur Police Station on February 22, 2026. Police registered a case under Section 137(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against an unknown person and began an investigation.
During the investigation, police received information that the girl was in Jammu with a suspect. A police team led by Sub-Inspector Kundan Lal Gaur was sent to Jammu. Meanwhile, an informant alerted police that the girl and the suspect had returned from Jammu to the Sarangarh-Bilaigarh area.
Pusaur Station House Officer Harshvardhan Singh Bais, along with a police team and the girl’s family members, conducted a raid at the suspect’s residence in Bilaigarh. The police rescued the minor girl and brought the suspect to Pusaur Police Station.
A female police officer recorded the girl’s statement, during which she reportedly told police that the suspect had lured her to Jammu on the promise of marriage. The two allegedly worked as labourers there.
Based on her statement and medical examination, police added Section 64(2)(m) of the BNS and Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act to the case.
The accused was identified as Ayush Kenwat, 22, a resident of Bilaigarh in Sarangarh-Bilaigarh district. He was arrested and produced before a local court, which sent him to judicial custody.
The rescue and arrest operation was carried out by Inspector Harshvardhan Singh, Sub-Inspector Kundan Lal Gaur, Trainee Sub-Inspector Divya Banjare, Head Constable Krishna Kumar Gupta, Head Constable Basant Pandey, and Constable Dhanurjay Chand Behera.
SSP Shashi Mohan Singh said the safety and prompt recovery of missing minors remains a top priority of Raigarh Police. He added that strict legal action will continue against people targeting minors.
