Villupuram: Tamil Nadu Police have arrested eight persons for sexually assaulting two minor girls in Villupuram, Tamil Nadu.  The siblings, aged seven and nine were allegedly raped over a period of five months.

The incident came to light when the victims were taken into hospital for a medical check-up after they fell sick. When the doctor noticed wounds and bite marks on the body of the children, he alerted their parents.

The mother of the children, who lives with her second husband lodged a complaint with Puducherry Police and Puducherry child welfare department. According to sources, the minors lived with their grandparents.

Police investigation revealed that the accused took the victims to a certain place promising to provide them with chocolates which the minors were fond of, and sexually assaulted them over a period of five months.

Sources say that there were 10 members who assaulted the minors and eight among them are arrested. Police have assured the family that the other two will be arrested soon. 

In a similar incident, Kerala Police arrested four men for allegedly raping two minor girls. Two of the accused are the father and uncle of the minor girls.

Meanwhile, in a bid to combat the rising offenses on children, the Union Cabinet approved amendments to strengthen the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act by including death penalty for aggravated sexual assault on children, besides providing stringent punishment for other crimes against minors, officials said.

The proposed changes in the POCSO Act also provide for fines and imprisonment to curb child pornography.

Also read: Fast track courts to be set up to clear pending 1.6 lakh POCSO cases: Union minister Kishan Reddy