Rape accused arrested in Pratapgarh after manhunt near railway station

Police in Pratapgarh have arrested a 23-year-old man wanted in a rape case, bringing to an end a manhunt that had been underway since the incident was reported. Pawan Kumar Patel was apprehended on Monday near Garhi Manikpur Railway Station following a tip-off from an informer, Manikpur police station officials confirmed.

According to police records, Patel, son of Arjun Prasad and a resident of Duiji Ka Purwa Palye in Nawabganj area of Prayagraj district, had a case of rape registered against him. Authorities had been actively searching for the accused since the incident came to light, with multiple teams deployed to track his movements across district boundaries.

The arrest was carried out as part of an ongoing campaign directed by Pratapgarh Superintendent of Police Deepak Bhukar to apprehend wanted criminals in the region. The operation was supervised by Additional Superintendent of Police (West) Brijnandan Rai and Circle Officer Kunda Shiv Narayan Vaish, demonstrating the multi-tier coordination involved in nabbing the suspect.

The ground-level operation was led by Manikpur station house officer, with Sub-Inspector Amarnath Singh and constables Dhyanchand, Aman Yadav, and Mukesh Singh executing the arrest. The team acted swiftly on intelligence inputs to corner Patel at the railway station area, a location often used by suspects attempting to flee jurisdiction.

Police have initiated necessary legal proceedings against the arrested accused, and further investigation into the case is currently underway. The swift arrest has been viewed as a success for the district police's intensified drive against wanted offenders, particularly in cases involving serious crimes against women.