Mumbai (Maharashtra), October 2: On Tuesday, September 28, a 24-year-old man was arrested by Maharashtra police for allegedly impregnating and raping his 17-year-old cousin on several occasions in the Thane district’s Bhiwandi.

A Maharashtra Police Officer said that the accused was arrested from a village in Bhiwandi taluka, following a complaint.

As a part of a joint family, the victim and her cousin lived in the same house, and he allegedly raped her on several occasions. The minor victim became pregnant as a consequence of the repeated rapes, said the police.

On Sunday, September 26, the 17-year-old rape survivor became a mother and gave birth to a child in the hospital. The mother of the victim lodged a police complaint against the accused.

After the accused was arrested, he was booked under Indian Penal Code Section 376 (rape) and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.