ALLAHABAD: Three people have been arrested for the murder of a seven-year-old girl who was also raped by a 15-year-old boy near Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh.
One of those arrested is the father of the alleged rapist, who according to the police wanted to prevent the child from testifying against his son.
The girl was allegedly raped, and then murdered three weeks later to prevent her from sharing details of the crime.
Police have also registered complaint against some local leaders for allegedly inciting the girl's family and obstructing police work during the protest.
On Wednesday, the police hit her father and other relatives with batons or lathis as they unsuccessfully tried to prevent her from being buried by the cops.
The police say that handing the child's body to the family would have triggered a potential law and order problem. "We had to resort to a lathi-charge because the family and others were planning to take the body and place it at an intersection and agitate. However, if the cops have misbehaved against anyone I will take action," said senior officer Joginder Kumar.
The child was raped early this month, allegedly by a 15-year-old who lived next door to her in their village 50 km from Allahabad. Her family says that for weeks, the police refused to register a case; on Sunday, the teen suspect was arrested.
Two days after that, the child was dragged out of her home at night by five people, including the father of the alleged rapist. The child was then stabbed to death, according to the police case.
"The rape happened on the 5th. We went to the cops on the 6th, but no one listened to us. Then they abducted my girl and were trying to take me away too. We found her body in the fields," said the rape victim's mother.
Among those accused is the husband of the village council head, who was reportedly a close friend of the alleged rapist's father. Because of his influence, the girl's family says, the police tried to avoid registering a case.
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