India: Rape of 5-year-old girl at US embassy complex

A 25-year-old man has been arrested on charges of 'rape' at a US embassy in the Indian capital, New Delhi.

According to foreign news agency AFP, police said the suspect was arrested from a high-security mission after the victim's family filed a sexual abuse complaint.

The family complaint alleged that the girl was allegedly abused in the residential quarters of the embassy's local house-keeping staff.

"The accused was arrested shortly after the sexual assault complaint," said Yogesh Kumar, the investigating officer of the case.

Preliminary reports of medical examination confirmed child abuse, he said.

He said that the accused has been booked under child abuse laws which is punishable by death.

The diplomatic compound, spread over a long area in New Delhi, is one of the safest areas of the capital, where security arrangements are extremely tight.

It should be noted that over the past few years, the number of cases of abuse in India has been increasing steadily, against which all the government's measures are proving inadequate.

India has also faced global criticism of violence against women since the gang rape and murder of a student on the bus in 2012.

According to official statistics, about 34,000 rap cases were reported in India in 2018, according to social workers, which is far less than the actual numbers.

In most cases of abuse, the accused is a relative, whose families of the affected children are reluctant to bring the incident out of fear of losing dignity, experts say