Seven-year-old girl ‘raped’, murdered in Panchmahals

Even as a teenager of Kadana taluka recuperates after being allegedly raped two weeks ago, a seven-year-old girl was allegedly raped and murdered by unidentified persons in neighbouring Santrampur taluka of the Panchmahals district on Tuesday.

Santrampur police said the Class II girl of Narsingpur, a village five km from Santrampur town, had gone away with children of her locality to fly kites on Monday evening but did not return till late.

"Her family members searched for her all the night but in vain. At around 11 am today, her body was found in bushes near the village," Snatrampur Police Sub-Inspector (PSI) Gopal Sharma told The Indian Express over phone.

Lunavada circle police inspector (CPI) H M Sutar said, "Prima facie, it seems the girl had been raped before being murdered."

The PSI said there were injury marks on private parts and head of the victim. The girl's body was taken to district sub-hospital in Santrampur for post mortem.

"The process of autopsy is on and primary reports suggest the girl had been raped," Dr B K Patidar, superintendent of the district sub-hospital, confirmed.

Sources claimed based on the questioning of other children who were last seen with the girl, police had zeroed-in on two suspects. The process to lodged an FIR in the incident was on.

This is the second incident of a minor being raped in the area. On December 27, a 15-year-old girl of Antalwada village in neighbouring Kadana taluka was allegedly abducted and raped. Later, she was dumped in ravines of river Mahi. The girl had required a surgery on her spinal cord and is recuperating in Civil Hospital in Ahmedabad.

Minor raped in Patan

Ahmedabad: A 16-year-old girl has allegedly been raped by an auto-rickshaw driver in Patan district, police said on Tuesday. The minor was to leave with her parents to attend a family function in Bhavnagar in some days.

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