TURA: The body of a missing seven-year-old girl, suspected to have been raped and murdered, was found in a remote village of South Garo Hills on Monday.
Villagers have apprehended a person hailing from Chaipani area of Dalu as the prime suspect and. Police said the victim was known to the person and was last seen in his company before her disappearance.
The incident took place in a village under Gasuapara police station of South Garo Hills district.
The child went missing on Sunday and a search led villagers to her lifeless body by the side of a stream.
The man who was working in the village for quite some time was apprehended by the villagers after eyewitness mentioned seeing him with the child before the incident.
The suspect, Bichon Ghose (31), was thrashed by villagers and later handed over to police.
Meanwhile, the Garoland State Movement Committee has strongly condemned the murder and demanded exemplary punishment to the guilty.
“This horrible act deserves to be condemned by everyone. This sinful act is a matter of provoking communal tension as many such unreported incidents have been happening in the region. This is because successive elected governments have failed to frame laws to check influx and safeguard its own people,” alleged leader of the GSMC, Nikman Ch Marak, while speaking to The Shillong Times.
The GSMC has called upon authorities to ensure awarding of the death penalty to the accused in the rape and murder of the innocent child. The group has also demanded that the government pay adequate compensation to the family of the victim.
