As Child-Crime Crisis Deepens, Madhya Pradesh Rape Exposes Dark Reality

As per NCRB, every three minutes, a child in India becomes a victim of crime. Every eight minutes, a POCSO case is filed. In 2023 alone, the country recorded 1,77,335 crimes against children, a staggering 9.2 per cent jump from the previous year. 

And at the centre of this national shame stands Madhya Pradesh, contributing 13 per cent of India's total child-crime figures. The state registered 22,393 cases against children in 2023, the highest in the country for the fifth consecutive year. With a crime rate of 77.9 per lakh child population, the state's numbers are almost double the national average.

It is against this grim backdrop that the Raisen rape case exploded. On November 21, a six-year-old girl was allegedly lured with chocolates into a forest and raped. The brutality left her ICU-bound in a Bhopal hospital with multiple internal and external injuries that doctors say may take six months to heal.

As the crime came to light, Raisen erupted, roads were blocked, police stations were surrounded, and stones were thrown. The outrage was so intense that Chief Minister Mohan Yadav rushed to the Raisen police headquarters, removing the Superintendent of Police (SP) and suspending the station in-charge.

The accused, 23-year-old Salman, vanished after the assault, triggering one of the most extensive manhunts in recent years. Eleven teams and more than 300 police personnel scoured forests, settlements, highways and city outskirts. After 144 hours, the breakthrough came from a small tea shop in Bhopal's Gandhi Nagar. Salman had returned to a stall where he once worked. Three local boys Abdul, Rizwan and Asif recognised him, quietly sent his photo to the police, and the fugitive was caught within minutes.

The real twist came during his transport to Gauharganj. Near Obaidullaganj's forests, the police vehicle got punctured. As officers stepped out, Salman lunged at Sub-Inspector Shyam Raj and snatched his service revolver. "Drop the pistol!" Inspector Tripathi recounts seconds of terror.

In an exclusive interview, Inspector Vijay Tripathi, who shot the accused, said, "At night, we were in two vehicles, transporting the accused Salman from Gandhi Nagar. As we approached Kiratnagar, the vehicle in front of us developed a puncture. As soon as the vehicle stopped, our police officers got out, and the accused also got out at the same time. As soon as the officers got out, the accused suddenly tried to snatch SI Shyam Raj's pistol and then snatched it."

"He attempted to fire at us and fired two rounds. We warned him, 'Drop the pistol, don't do this,' but he didn't listen. First, we fired in the air to stop him. But he started firing again. Police have the right to self-defence, so we were forced to open fire. We fired four rounds, one of which hit his leg. He fell and was injured. As soon as he fell, we immediately picked him up and took him to the hospital. His actions clearly indicated that he had experience with weapons. The entire incident occurred between 4:00 and 4:30 in the morning. There was absolutely no pressure on us. What happened was entirely due to his actions, and we had to act in self-defence," Tripathi added. 

Salman, who also holds a permanent warrant in a mobile theft case from Sehore, is now being treated at Hamidia Hospital.

The survivor remains in the ICU with swollen cheeks, deep bruises on her knees and hands, and multiple wounds across her body. Her pain is not just a family's tragedy; it is the question confronting an entire state already topping NCRB's darkest charts.

Reacting to the arrest and encounter, Chief Minister Yadav said, "No one can escape from our clutches. If anyone takes the law into their hands, we won't let them go. There is no place for laxity."