Tensions erupted in West Bengal’s Cooch Behar district after a minor girl was allegedly raped by an elderly man on Thursday. While the alleged rapist has been arrested, eight others have been arrested for attacking police during a protest where locals blocked a road demanding the death penalty for the arrested man.

According to local sources, when the minor girl went to the riverside near her house on Thursday afternoon, the elderly man threatened her with a sharp weapon and raped her, before a woman who arrived at the scene rescued her.

Despite threats from the elderly man, the girl’s family filed a police complaint, the sources said. However, locals alleged that the police had delayed the arrest. The situation turned volatile on Saturday night, when the locals set tires on fire and blocked roads at the local market. When the police arrived, stones were reportedly pelted at them, and the officer-in-charge of the local station was injured. In response, the police resorted to a mild lathi-charge to disperse the crowd.

The locals are observing a 12-hour shutdown in the area, leaving shops and markets closed. A police contingent is patrolling the area, which remains tense.

The police said the elderly man was arrested on Saturday night and that the allegations against him were being investigated. “We have received a complaint regarding the rape incident. Based on that, one person has been arrested under the Pocso Act. Additionally, eight others have been arrested for obstructing police work and attacking police personnel,” senior police official told mediapersons.