Aligarh: A 16-year-old Dalit girl whose body was found at a field in an Aligarh village Sunday was allegedly “strangled and smothered to death”, and then dragged for about 20 meters before being dumped, sources in Uttar Pradesh Police have told ThePrint.
Police sources quoted the autopsy report to say the girl had “tears and bruises” on her lips, adding that her body also had “resistance marks”, which means she put up a fight.
The report, the sources said, does not mention any injuries to her private parts, signs of beating, or sexual assault. However, her vaginal and rectal swabs have been sent for a forensic examination for further clarity, they added.
The teenager — who was verbally challenged and, according to her family, couldn’t speak more than a few words — was found dead in her village Kiwlas Sunday afternoon. Her family says she was out to collect fodder for goats when she was attacked, and alleges that she was found partially unclothed.
“It appears that she was strangled with a piece of cloth. There is a ligature mark around her neck. The cause of death is both strangulation and smothering,” a senior police officer said. “All abrasions, including the peeling off of skin, on her body are because she was dragged across the field from the place of incident to the place where the body was found,” a senior police officer said.
Following a complaint from the girl’s uncle, police have lodged an FIR against unknown people under sections of rape, murder and under the Protection Of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
“It looked like she was assaulted, molested, raped and then killed, after which she was dragged to the spot where the body was found,” reads the complaint, according to the FIR, accessed by ThePrint.
No arrest has been made so far, but police have detained three youths in connection with the case, sources said.
A senior police officer added that 12 people have been called in for questioning, including Rajveer Singh, the owner of the field near which the girl’s body was found.
Speaking to ThePrint, Senior Superintendent of Police (Aligarh) Muniraj G. said they are trying to get the forensics report at the earliest. Five teams, he added, have been formed to investigate the case.
“The investigation is on, we have spoken to the villagers. Some people have been interrogated, but we haven’t yet arrested anyone. There may be 1 or more (people involved), we are yet to conclude,” he said.
On Monday, members of the victim’s family and several villagers organised a protest demanding immediate action in the case. Two policemen were injured in the protest while trying to disperse the crowd.
‘Had gone to get fodder’
The teenager lived in Kiwlas with her maternal grandmother, as a companion to the elderly widow. She moved in with her grandparents 10 years ago. She is survived by her parents, daily wagers who live in Aligarh city with her two brothers and one of her two sisters. The other sister is married.
The 16-year old had never attended school, according to family members. She suffered from a verbal impairment that left her incapable of speaking more than a couple of words like “maa”, “ghaas (grass)” and “baba (father)”.
“We sent her here to live with my mother since she is old and needed company. My daughter couldn’t talk, she could only speak softly, in broken sentences, with two-three words, which is why we sent her here to live,” said the girl’s mother. “My husband can’t take care of us, he is a drunkard.”
On the day of her death, before noon, the girl is said to have gone out to collect fodder for their goats from the family’s field.
“She had gone to get fodder around 11 am, before me. Usually, both of us go together,” the grandmother told ThePrint. “I went to see her once, she was there around 11.45-12. But then, she didn’t return home until late. We then asked a couple of villagers to look for her,” she said. “She was lying dead there, far from our field, her pyjamas were removed.”
The girl’s body was found at an estimated distance of 300-350 metres away from the family’s field.
Police sources said the autopsy report pegs time of death at 1 pm.
‘A suspect’
The girl’s grandmother said she has no idea about who could kill the teenager, but other family members pointed a finger of suspicion at a 17-18-year-old boy from the village Dorai nearby. The basis of their claim is the boy’s allegedly suspicious movements on the day.
“That boy was at his own khet when she went to cut fodder,” claimed the girl’s uncle, adding that he later ran away. “He was seen watering the field but left it midway. Why would he run away? Either he must have seen something or he has done it. But the girl was not light in weight. He must have called another person and they probably killed her because she resisted them. The intention was to rape her.”
Some villagers told ThePrint that the boy “was seen there till noon, but left soon after 1 pm, between 1 and 1.30 pm”.
The body was found at a site 20-30 metres away from the tubewell he was using to water the field. Police sources said the youth is among the three detainees.
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