Key Points:
A Sikh teen girl was abducted, held captive and gang raped by 5-6 men from the Pakistani grooming gang.
She was rescued after around 200 people from the Sikh community protested outside the flat where she was held.
One of the accused has been arrested who formed a relationship with the victim when she was only 13 years old.
In a shocking case from London, a Sikh teenage girl was allegedly abducted and gang-raped by a group of six men from the Pakistani Grooming Gang sparking widespread outrage by the Sikh community on 13 January, 2026.
A video showing more than 200 members of the Sikh community protesting for the young girl’s rescue went viral across various social media platforms. The incident took place in Hounslow, West London, after the community learned that the girl was being held captive by a man in his 30s.
After hours of protest, one of the men was arrested and the sixteen-year-old girl was rescued from a flat in London. The latest case has reignited the discourse around gangs involved in grooming and exploiting young girls for sexual advances.
According to the Sikh Press Association, the accused had formed a relationship with the victim when she was only 13 years old. She was persuaded to leave her home when she turned 16.
Members of the Sikh community alleged that there has been a sharp increase in cases of abduction and rape in West London. Billionaire businessman Elon Musk took to his X account to comment on the rising cases of Pakistani rape gangs. “For all those poor little girls who were so terribly abused, many of whom died, they should do the right thing,” Musk wrote.
The now-viral video, which has amassed millions of views, was posted by a Sikh community group, AK Media, and showed members of the Sikh community demonstrating outside the flat where the teenage girl was allegedly held against her will.
The victim’s parents also joined the demonstration after police authorities failed to act on the matter in time. The community later became involved and protested outside the flat, where the teenage girl was being held for several hours, possibly days. According to reports, the residence of the accused was located in an area that had several secondary schools nearby.
The victim later revealed that she attempted to escape from the flat but was locked inside a room. She stated that she was subjected to sexual and physical abuse by five to six men of Pakistani origin. The protesters raised their voices over the lack of action by the authorities amid the rising number of cases.
The first case involving grooming gangs emerged in 2002 after then Labour MP Ann Cryer raised concerns that young girls were being groomed mainly by men of Pakistani origin in her West Yorkshire constituency of Keighley.
According to former Home Secretary Suella Braverman, the ethnicity of men involved in such grooming cases is largely British-Pakistani. According to a report by The Week, more than 1,400 girls were victims of grooming gangs in the city of Rotherham alone between 1997 and 2013.
In June 2025, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stated that a national inquiry would be initiated to investigate grooming gangs in London. The independent inquiry into grooming gangs involved in the sexual exploitation of young girls was set up following a recommendation by Baroness Louise Casey, a government official.
The Casey Report revealed how authorities had failed to protect young girls from sexual and physical abuse. The report recommended a change in the law, stating that any adult in England or Wales who engages in sexual activity with a person under the age of 16 should be charged with rape.
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