Kotdwar (PTI): A man was arrested here for allegedly raping his 13-year-old stepdaughter, police said on Sunday.

The 32-year-old accused was arrested from Najibabad Road on Saturday and later sent to judicial custody on court orders, they said.

According to police, the minor's mother had lodged a missing person complaint on Friday, stating that her daughter had left home without informing anyone at around 7 am on February 5.

During the investigation, police analysed CCTV camera footage from nearby areas and found that the girl had gone to her grandmother's house.

The grandmother told police that the girl was extremely frightened and did not want to return home due to alleged harassment. She later left the girl with an acquaintance, from where police safely recovered her.

After gaining the girl's confidence, police said she disclosed that her stepfather had raped her on the night of February 4, following which she ran away from home the next morning.

A case has been registered against the accused under Sections 65(1) and 75(2) (rape) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Sections 3 and 4 (sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

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Bengaluru (PTI): Over 60 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 5 pm in both Assembly constituencies in Karnataka, where bypolls were held on Thursday.

While the turnout in Bagalkot was 65.68 per cent, it was 63.04 per cent in Davanagere South.

While the ruling Congress faces the challenge of retaining both seats, the BJP aims to wrest them and deliver a setback to its rival, which is currently witnessing an "internal power struggle" over leadership.

The bypolls were necessitated due to the demise of senior Congress MLAs H Y Meti (Bagalkot) and Shamanur Shivashankarappa (Davanagere South).

A total of over 2.59 lakh eligible voters are expected to cast their votes at around 319 polling stations in Bagalkot, where nine candidates are in the fray.

In Davanagere South, over 2.31 lakh eligible voters are expected to vote across 284 polling stations, with 25 candidates contesting.

The BJP has fielded former MLA and 2023 defeated candidate Veerabhadrayya Charantimath from Bagalkot, and a fresh face, Srinivas T Dasakariyappa, from Davanagere South.

The Congress has given tickets to family members of the late legislators in both constituencies. Bagalkot candidate Umesh Meti is the son of H Y Meti, while Samarth Mallikarjun from Davanagere South is the grandson of Shamanur Shivashankarappa.