New Delhi:
A nine-year-old girl was raped allegedly by her neighbour thrice in ten days in west Delhi, police said on Monday.
The incident was reported from Nihal Vihar and the accused Dinesh was arrested on Sunday, a senior police official said.
Dinesh works with a private company in Delhi and was living in a rented accommodation on a floor above the victim's family house.
Fearing social stigma, the family reported the matter to police as molestation and not rape on April 23 when the girl, eldest of four siblings, informed them about the assault, the official said.
The girl was first sexually assaulted on April 10 when Dinesh called her to his room where he allegedly raped her.
The child did not inform her parents first. Over the past week, she was raped twice after which she informed her family.
"The family reported the matter as molestation. It was when we conducted the medical examination at the Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital, it came to light that she was raped," the official said.
A case of rape was registered.