A 16-year-old girl, who was missing since two days, was found dead on Thursday near isolated woods at Halaila in Kotkhai, 65 km from Shimla. Reportedly, the girl was found naked, suspecting rape before murder.
On July 4, the girl did not return home from Government Senior Secondary School, Mahasu. The police also recovered her school dress lying near the body, raising rape suspicion.
Deputy superintendent of police (DSP) Theog Manoj Joshi reached the spot and sent the body for postmortem. “We are not ruling out the possibility of rape of the minor,” he said.
After the body was recovered, people of nearby villages reached the place and identified the deceased.
Shimla additional superintendent of police (ASP) Bhajan Dev Negi said the investigation in on and they were waiting for the postmortem report. “We have registered a case under Section 376 (punishment for rape), 302 (punishment for murder) and section 4 (punishment for penetrative sexual assault) of The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act against unidentified person.
Police are recording statement of villagers, school staff, classmates and relatives of the deceased.
{{/usCountry}}Police are recording statement of villagers, school staff, classmates and relatives of the deceased.
{{/usCountry}}(In the earlier version of the copy the minor’s age was incorrectly reported, the correction has been made)