J& K cop involved in minor’s rape

■ Policeman was probing assault, murder of nomadic girl

In a shocking turn of events, a police official engaged in the probe into the mysterious rape and murder of an eight- yearold nomadic girl in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kathua district has allegedly turned out to be the perpetrator in the crime which had outraged the people across the state in January.

A Special Investigation Team ( SIT) of the J& K police’s crime branch has arrested special police officer ( SPO) Deepak Khajuria for his alleged involvement in the gruesome act. The body of the victim, Aasifa, the nomadic Bakarwal ( hersmen) girl, was found in the woods near Rasana village of Hiranagar tehsil in frontier district of Kathua on January 17, a week after she went missing while grazing horses.

“We have arrested SPO Deepak Khajuria for his involvement in the case of kidnapping and killing of the minor girl,” said additional director general of police ( crime branch) Alok Puri. “We are taking services of the forensic science department to investigate the alleged rape,” he added.

Khajuria, a 28- year- old SPO posted at the Hiranagar police station, was among those appointed to trace the girl after her family had filed a missing report for their daughter.

Police sources said that Khajuria, along with an underage boy who is already in police custody, raped and murdered the minor after holding her captive for a week.

“We have clinching evidence about his ( Deepak Khajuria’s) involvement. There was motive and we have evidence as well,” Mr Puri said.

He claimed that the accused has confessed to his crime after he was confronted with evidence. The officials said that the motive behind the crime was to spark fear among the nomad community.