Minor raped at Meerut station: ‘Attacker had grey hair, in his 50s’

Two days after the alleged rape of a 14-year-old girl at the Bareilly city railway station, security agencies were still looking for the suspect—a man in his 50s with grey hair, investigators said.

Government Railway Police (GRP) has registered a case under the relevant sections of the POCSO Act against the suspect, whom the survivor described as an intoxicated man of around 50 years old. The suspect had partially grey hair and was wearing a red shirt, according to them.

Eight teams—comprising four from GRP, two from the Railway Protection Force (RPF) and two from Bareilly’s civil police, including Special Operations Group (SOG)—were reportedly searching for the man. GRP superintendent (Moradabad) Ashutosh Shukla said, “The accused will be arrested soon.”

The assault occurred on the night of March 27, when the minor was returning home in Etah with her father, aunt, and a cousin from Tanakpur in Uttarakhand. Aboard Kasganj Passenger, the family reached the Bareilly station around 8:45 pm.

The father stepped off the train to buy food and drinks, but as the train began to move, he slipped and fell while attempting to reboard. Seeing this, his nephew also disembarked, leaving the girl and aunt behind.

When the girl couldn’t find her father or cousin on the coach, she panicked. She jumped off in a desperate bid to reunite with her family. It was then that the suspect seized her and allegedly raped her in an isolated corner.

SRMS Medical College’s chief medical officer Dr Vishram Singh said the youngster’s health condition was improving. “She is conscious and able to recount,” he added.

Defunct CCTV cams?

Bareilly senior superintendent of police (SSP) Anurag Arya has deployed surveillance teams and is coordinating with Kotwali and Subhash Nagar police to track suspects using mobile data from nearby towers and CCTV footage from the Marhinath area.

However, the investigation has been reportedly hampered by a critical lapse: despite a recent ₹10.97 crore refurbishment of Bareilly City Railway Station under the Amrit Bharat scheme, many of the newly installed CCTV cameras remained non-operational, a GRP official privy to the investigation said.

“One of the functional cameras near the RPF gate provided unclear footage, leaving police reliant on external sources,” he added.

The crime has sparked outrage and scrutiny over the GRP’s security measures. According to a senior police officer in the district, the incident was reported to the local police via a hospital memo around 12.30 am—nearly four hours after the incident.

By then, nearby shops with potential CCTV evidence had closed, and the window for immediate action had narrowed.

Meanwhile, the survivor’s father, who sells vegetables to make a living, demanded the death penalty for the culprit. “My daughter loves me very much. When she saw that I wasn’t on the train, she jumped off... The one who did this to her should be hanged.”

“The police found us and told me that a girl had been raped and taken to the district hospital. I went there and saw that it was my daughter. She was severely injured,” he added.

On Saturday afternoon, Pushpa Pandey, a member of the state women’s commission, inspected the crime scene. She directed authorities to expedite the probe and pledged financial assistance to the victim’s family. SP North Mukesh Chandra Mishra also visited the medical college to record the girl’s statement.