A 17-year-old boy has been detained for allegedly raping a 21-year-old woman.

Police said the boy accused of rape lives in the same neighbourhood as the woman.

“According to the complaint, the woman was subjected to sexual harassment over the past two months, following which she became pregnant. She has been admitted to a government hospital,” said an officer of the police station where she reported the matter on Tuesday.

Based on the complaint, the police detained the youth.

According to the law, a minor who is an accused cannot be arrested. The boy will be produced before the Juvenile Justice Board instead of a court.

Senior police officers said the case has been registered under sections of rape and criminal intimidation.

“The victim and the accused knew each other. The woman has alleged that she was subjected to repeated harassment. She has reported being sick,” said an investigator.

Sources in the police said that since the accused is a minor, the gravity of the offence had to be “weighed to ascertain if the person should be charged and tried like an adult”.