A madrassa teacher has been arrested for allegedly holding a 12-year-old girl captive and raping her in Uttar Pradesh’s Gorakhpur, police said on Tuesday. 

Maulvi Rahmat Ali teaches at a madrassa in a village under the Uruwa police station in Gorakhpur. Officials said that, following her daily routine, the 12-year-old girl went to the madrassa to study on Monday morning. About two and a half hours after classes began, Ali sent the other children home but held the girl back under some pretext. 

He held her captive, raped her and threatened to kill her if she made any noise. 

When the girl reached home, she told her mother about what the maulvi (cleric) had done. The girl’s mother went to the police station to lodge a complaint and when people in the area found out about the alleged rape, they began searching for Ali and thrashed him before handing him over to the police. 

Superintendent of Police (South) Jitendra Kumar said, “After the complaint, a case was registered and the victim was medically examined. Her statement has been recorded.”

Officials said Ali has been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act as well.