Odisha government has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the murder of a 5-year-old girl in Nayagarh district. On Saturday, 28 November, the state Home Department wrote to the Registrar General of Orissa High Court informing of the government’s decision to constitute the team.
According to reports, the SIT will be headed by Inspector General of Police (IG) Arun Bothra.
Four other officers of the SIT – SP RK Dora, additional SP RC Thamba Narendra, Inspector Kuma Behera and Inspector Mamata Rani Panda – will be the CID Crime Branch.
Victim’s Parents Attempted Self-Immolation
On 25 November, a couple from Nayagarh district attempted self-immolation demanding justice for their five-year-old daughter, who was allegedly murdered in July this year.
The parents alleged that their daughter was kidnapped and killed by one Babuli Nayak, a close aide of a minister.
The child had gone missing while playing in front of their house on 14 July. A few days later, her remains were found in a bag behind the house.
According to the postmortem report, sexual abuse and cause of death could not be ascertained as decomposition had set in.
DNA Test Conducted: Home Minister
In the days that followed Minister of State for Home, Dibya Shankar Mishra said that circumstantial evidence points out that the minor girl was kidnapped and murdered. “The remains of the body were then sent to Cuttack SCB for postmortem which revealed that the girl was 5- to 6-year-old but there was no evidence to prove that she was raped before being murdered. Later, a DNA test was also conducted to confirm that the victim is the daughter of the complainant,” the minister told the media.
During the investigation, police interrogated 34 persons. However, the Opposition BJP and Congress had raised concerns over the investigation since the parents of the victim had alleged the involvement of BJD Minister Arun Sahoo’s aide.
Following the demand for an independent probe, the government has not ordered the SIT investigation.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)