Madhya Pradesh rape-accused runs away after court awards him life imprisonment

Bhopal — A rape accused fled from the district court moments after he was convicted for life imprisonment for raping a minor girl in Rajgarh in Madhya Pradesh, 141 kilometres north of Bhopal, said police.

The accused, Jitendra Bheel, 23, a resident of Jirapur village of the district also beat up a court official before running away during the hearing of his case, said Pradeep Sharma, superintendent of police, Rajgarh.

The SP said, “Bheel was arrested in 2018 for raping a minor girl. In 2019, the court granted him interim bail. On Saturday, he appeared before the court for the hearing. The district court awarded him life imprisonment till death. After listening to the punishment, Bheel beat up a court Munshi and fled from the court.”

The police have registered a case under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 224 (Resistance or obstruction by a person to his lawful apprehension) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The officials are trying to nab Bheel and are also interrogating his mother, the SP added.