An 18-year-old Dalit woman from the southern Indian state of Kerala has accused 64 men of sexually abusing her since she was 13 years old.
Police have arrested 28 people in connection with the case so far – the men are in custody and have not made a public statement.
The suspects, aged between 17 and 47, include the woman's neighbours, sports coaches and her father's friends, police told the BBC.
The woman reported the alleged harassment after a team of counselors working under the government program visited her home.
The police have registered around 18 cases under various Indian criminal laws and the Scheduled Tribes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act – a law that prohibits crimes against the lower castes and tribes of India.
Dalits belong to the Hindu caste and face widespread discrimination in India despite laws to protect them.
Cases have also been registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act, since the abuse happened when the woman was young, police chief Nandakumar S told BBC Hindi.
It is expected that more cases will be registered in the coming days as the police are still investigating the matter. A team of 25 members has been established.
The police said that the allegations of abuse started when the girl was 13 years old. His neighbor is accused of molesting him and taking sexual pictures of him, the News Minute website reported.
Her neighbor allegedly sexually abused her again when she was 16 years old, recorded videos of the abuse and shared it with others who continued to abuse the woman for many years.
The lawyer in charge of the Child Welfare Committee (CWC) in this region told the Indian Express newspaper that the woman was an athlete and was attending various sports camps, which could have caused the abuse to continue.
Police said the woman was allegedly arrested three times in the past five years.
Those accused of abusing her reportedly used her father's phone number to contact her and the woman kept them on the phone. Police are now using the phone to trace the suspect.
The woman's family is said to have been unaware of the allegations of abuse.
This matter came to light when a team of psychological counselors visited the woman's home last month. The counselors reported the matter to the CWC and the woman was asked to appear before the committee along with her mother.
“She received psychological counselling, and then she opened up in front of a psychiatrist, telling about the sexual abuse she was facing since she was 13 years old,” a CWC official told The Indian Express.
He added that the woman has been moved to a CWC-affiliated shelter for her protection.
The woman's allegations caused a stir across the country. He is expected to give a statement to the female police officer regarding the alleged harassment.
Additional reporting by Imran Qureshi, BBC Hindi
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