The police managed to identify the accused on the basis of inputs given by local informers. (Representational Image)

Pune: A 42-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly kidnapping and raping an 11-year-old girl in Baramati taluka of Pune district, police said on May 27.

The alleged incident occurred near a village last evening when the man allegedly accosted the girl who had gone to buy groceries and forced her to sit on his bicycle.

"The man took the girl to a deserted place on the outskirts of the village and allegedly raped her. He then dropped her near the village," said a Pune Rural police officer.

Meanwhile, as the girl didn't return to her house, her family members and villagers launched a search to trace her. They spotted her at around 11 PM, the officer said.

"After the girl narrated the incident, a manhunt was launched to trace the man," he said, adding that the police secured CCTV footage of the area from where the girl was kidnapped, but it was unclear. However, the police managed to identify the accused on the basis of inputs given by local informers.

"Police obtained the mobile phone number of the man. He was called by an undercover woman police constable who asked him to meet at a particular place, following which he was arrested," the officer said.

The accused has been arrested under relevant sections of the IPC and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The accused, whose name is withheld, is married and is a resident of a neighbouring village.