A 16-year-old girl who gave birth after allegedly being raped by two men in India has been ordered to sell the baby and keep the money as compensation.
The girl claimed she was raped first by a cleric from the local Mosque and then by a younger man who said they would get married but then changed his mind.
The village’s ‘panchayat’, a committee of elected elders with self-governing and judicial powers, in Muzaffarpur in Bihar, India, reportedly ordered the young mother to sell her baby.
The mother reported the incident to the police several days ago, local reports say.
The girl said a Muslim cleric from the village mosque raped her while she was unconscious and filmed the alleged act.
The cleric continued to rape her over a two-month period and threatened her if she told anyone.
She became pregnant during this time and told a young man from the village.
This man then raped her on the pretext of marriage, but didn’t follow through with his promise.
The alleged victim said she told her family about the pregnancy and they first approached the panchayat for justice.
After the teen gave birth last month, the panchayat reportedly called the incident unfortunate and ordered her to sell the baby and keep the money as compensation.
A police spokesperson said: ‘We are checking the claims made by the victim and the verdict of the panchayat.
‘A DNA test is also being conducted to identify the biological father of the newborn.’
The investigation is ongoing and no arrests have been reported.