Pune: Vishrambaug police have registered a case under the provisions of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act against a 20-year-old woman from Ahilyanagar for allegedly forcing her six-year-old cousin to beg near a Ganapati pandal off Laxmi Road on Tuesday evening.Sub-inspector Chandrakant Javalgikar of Faraskhana police noticed the girl and took her to the Vishrambaug police station, where he lodged a complaint against the woman.“The six-year-old girl has been shifted to an observation home for further care,” an officer from Vishrambaug police said.Police said the woman was detained and served a notice directing her to cooperate with the investigation. She belongs to a poor family and lives in a village in Ahilyanagar district. According to police, she wanted to earn some quick money and decided to make her cousin beg.Police said the woman brought the girl to Pune specifically for the 12-day Ganapati festival. She allegedly applied silver-coloured paint to the girl’s face and body before taking her near the pandal to beg. Devotees visiting the pandal were seen giving money to the child.Police are conducting further investigation into the case.
