Kerala: Minor raped, strangulated to death, Opposition accuses police of lapses

Kerala crime: A minor girl was allegedly raped and strangulated to death after she was abducted by a migrant worker from her house in Kerala’s Kochi, police said on Saturday (July 29).

A police official cited the autopsy report and said that the five-year-old child was raped and strangulated to death.

The girl went missing on Friday. Her body was found dumped in a sack in a marshy area behind a local market in the nearby Aluva today. The accused person was arrested later in the day.

“We received the complaint at 7.10 PM and an FIR was registered before 8 PM on Friday. Our team checked the CCTV visuals and found that the child was with the labourer. We apprehended him at 9.30 PM itself. However, he was in an inebriated state and the child was not with him,” Ernakulam Rural SP, Vivek Kumar said.

Kumar said that as per the medical examination, the minor was raped and strangulated to death.

“She was brutally assaulted, sexually abused and the accused used garbage and sacks to cover the body,” the police said.

The police nabbed the labourer hailing from Bihar after a CCTV analysis. He was staying in a room on the first floor of the building where the child’s family resided.

“Today morning, he confessed to the crime. However, he also tried to mislead the investigation team,” Kochi Range DIG, Srinivas A, told reporters here.

Earlier in the day, locals informed the police of seeing the child with the migrant worker near the market area on Friday.

Police rushed to the spot, searched the area along with the locals, and recovered the girl’s body.

People said the land behind the market is an isolated area and is also a waste dump site.

Opposition slams Kerala Police

The Opposition Congress slammed the Kerala Police and alleged that there were lapses on their part in tracing the child.

Leader of Opposition in the Assembly, VD Satheesan said the child was inside Aluva town itself and was not found on time.

The LoP said the police failed to act even after it was clear that the accused had abducted the child.

“The situation is such that even children are not safe these days. The police claim that over usage of drugs and alcohol led to this crime,” Satheesan said.

KPCC chief K Sudhakaran urged the government to provide appropriate compensation to the family of the child.

Meanwhile, state police chief Shaik Darvesh Saheb rejected the charges and said there were no lapses on behalf of the investigators.

Rural SP Kumar had earlier in the day told the media that the accused was nabbed within an hour after the police were informed about the crime.

Ministers including V Sivankutty, Veena George and P Rajeeve condemned the brutal crime and expressed deep sorrow over the incident.

(With PTI inputs)

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