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Woman ‘raped by her family as punishment for eloping’

Police say the woman's father and brother are among four men being held

Lydia Smith
Wednesday 29 November 2017 13:07 GMT
Demonstrators protest sexual assault in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh
Demonstrators protest sexual assault in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh (Getty)

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A woman was allegedly raped by four members of her family, including her father and brother, after she eloped with her boyfriend.

Police said the victim was attacked in the village of Dhaneda in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.

The four people have registered a case against them on the directive of the Allahabad High Court, The Times of India reported.

The woman had eloped with her boyfriend several times, twice in July and once in October, police said.

Her family had twice filed an abduction complaint with police.

There have been regular calls to address sexual violence against women and girls in the country, where there had been a number of high profile cases in recent years.

In October, a policeman was arrested on suspicion of raping a seven-year-old girl in Uttar Pradesh. Local media reported the little girl was found naked in the officer’s quarters in the state.

Nearly 35,000 cases of rape were reported across India in 2015 - the most recent year for which government statistics are available - according to the country's National Crime Records Bureau.

However, human rights experts warned the figure was likely to be higher, as many attacks are not reported.

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