Udupi: A five-year-old girl was allegedly sexually assaulted by an unidentified man near the PPC area in Udupi city on Thursday afternoon.

The accused, believed to be around 30 years old, carried out the act, and a case was registered at the Udupi Women’s Police Station based on the complaint filed by the girl's parents.

Taking the incident seriously, Women and Child Development Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar, who also holds the position of District In-Charge Minister, has directed the authorities to immediately locate and arrest the accused.

Minister Hebbalkar, who is receiving treatment at the hospital for injuries sustained in an accident, immediately contacted the District SP and the Deputy Commissioner to gather details about the incident.

“The accused must be arrested immediately, and the girl should be provided with all necessary assistance,” the minister instructed the Deputy Commissioner and the Superintendent of Police.

Public assistance sought in identifying the accused.

The suspect's photograph has been captured by local CCTV cameras, and the Udupi Women’s Police Station has appealed to the public to provide any information regarding the individual.

Contact numbers for reporting information:

Control Room: 9480805400

Police Inspector, Women’s Station: 9480805430

Women’s Station: 08202525599

Police Sub-Inspector, Women’s Station: 8277988949

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Shimla (PTI): A woman has been arrested from Punjab for allegedly duping another woman of Rs 25 lakhs by promising her to arrange a visa for Canada, police said on Monday.

The accused has been identified as Manju Kumari, a resident of Punjab.

Senior Superintendent of Police SSP Shimla Gaurav Singh said that Manju had contacted the woman several months ago and had promised her to arrange a visa for Canada.

"After this, she asked for money for the same from the victim, which she transferred to her on multiple occasions. However, as time went by, Manju started to make various excuses and ignored her calls," the SSP said.

Upon suspecting being defrauded, the victim's brother registered a complaint, and a case was registered under sections 318 (4) (cheating), 61(2) (criminal conspiracy) and 352 (2) (intentional insults designed to provoke a breach of peace) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the SSP said.

"Police teams were sent to Haryana and Punjab, but she kept evading arrest as she kept changing her locations as well as her mobile numbers. However, the police teams successfully arrested her on Sunday from a flat located in Kharar in Punjab," he said.

Further investigation into the matter is underway, and the defrauded money is also being recovered, he added.