Bhadohi (UP), February 19 A three-year-old girl was killed after allegedly being thrown into a well by her uncle on Thursday in Bhadohi district following a dispute over a suspected illicit relationship with her mother, police said.
The accused, Ranjit Bind, 30, has been arrested, and the body of the child, Aanchal, was recovered from the well and sent for post-mortem, a senior police officer said.
The incident took place in the afternoon in Danupur Paschim Patti village in the Suryawa area, Additional Superintendent of Police Shubham Agrawal said.
According to the police, two daughters of Raju Bind, Ragini, 5, and Aanchal, 3, were playing near their house when their uncle, Ranjit Bind, allegedly picked up Aanchal and threw her into a nearby well before fleeing to his house and locking himself inside.
Ragini informed family members about the incident, triggering panic in the village, following which the police reached the spot and recovered the child's body from the well.
Police arrested the accused Ranjit from his house later, they said.
During interrogation, the accused allegedly claimed he had been in an illicit relationship with the child's mother for several years and that she had been pressuring him by claiming Aanchal was his daughter, police said.
He further alleged that after his marriage, he refused to continue the relationship and was being blackmailed with threats that his paternity of the child would be made public.
Police said the accused allegedly committed the crime after the dispute between the two.
Based on a complaint lodged by the victim's father, Raju Bind, a case of murder has been registered against Ranjit Bind, and further legal action is underway, the officer added.