Police booked the owner of a brick kiln and six others accused of raping and setting ablaze a minor Dalit labourer at the factory in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district, news agency PTI reported on Tuesday, 28 May.
The 14-year-old girl, who worked at the brick kiln at a village in the district, was found dead on Saturday, following which her parents had registered a complaint in Kotwali police station, SHO Anil Kapervan told PTI.
Kapervan said seven people, including the owner of the factory, were booked for raping and setting her afire.
The post-mortem report suggests that the girl died due to burn injuries and suffocation, the SHO said.
The allegations of rape have not been confirmed, The Indian Express reported on Wednesday, citing area’s Circle Officer.
“The investigation is pending and arrests will be made as per evidence,” area’s Circle Officer reportedly said.
The girl’s father and mother had reportedly gone out of the village on Thursday for a day to buy medicine.
According to IE, the parents got to know about their daughter’s charred body on Friday morning, after the accused allegedly set her afire during night.
The family, the report said, claimed that the girl was raped in their absence and later burnt to death. A picture of the victim’s body also showed rope marks on her ankles, the report cited sources as saying.
Police have reportedly recovered the girls’ slippers and some clothes from the spot.
(With inputs from PTI and the Indian Express)
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