Angry Saadatganj residents protest rape, murder of minor

LUCKNOW: The post-mortem examination and funeral of a six-yearold girl, who was raped and murdered allegedly by her father’s friend in Saadatganj locality on Sunday, were carried out on Monday amid heavy police presence.

Earlier in the day, a group of lawyers tried to attack the accused while he was being produced in a city court but the cops managed to rescue him.

Upset over the incident, locals and the victim’s family members staged a protest alleging delayed police response on Sunday night and Monday morning.

Lucknow SSP Kalanidhi Naithani said the situation was under control as the accused was arrested within a few hours of the crime being reported.

He said the family members and locals had been assured of stringent action against the accused. He said additional SP West Vikas Chandra Tripathi had been asked to get the case tried in the fast track court.

The SSP said the girl’s body was buried at Aishbagh graveyard after carrying out its autopsy. He said a police force accompanied the funeral procession to ensure no law and order problem was caused as there was a lot of resentment among locals over the incident.

Naithani said the accused held the girl hostage when she had gone to give him water in his room on Sunday evening and raped her. He said the girl was later recovered lying below the cot with her throat slit in the room of the accused. He said the

police rushed the girl to the trauma centre of King George’s Medical University but she succumbed to her injuries.

The SSP said the accused worked as a mason along with the girl’s father and frequented her house. He said an FIR had been registered under IPC sections 364 for kidnapping and 376-2(f) for rape of girl below 12-years of age.

He said the section 5/6 of Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2012 had been invoked for committing aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a child.