Kanpur (UP), March 18 An 11-year-old girl who had been missing since Monday was found buried in a wheat field near Bidhnu, with signs of sexual assault, triggering outrage and panic in the area, police said on Wednesday.
The family members have accused a neighbor of the crime, and the police have taken the neighbor in for questioning.
The fifth-grade student had gone to graze goats with her older sister on Monday afternoon. Her sister, who returned home briefly to do some work, could not find her when she went back to the field, prompting a frantic search by family members and villagers.
A missing person's complaint was lodged at the Bidhnu police station, but the girl could not be located during overnight searches.
On Tuesday, her body was found buried about 500 meters from her house, after some villagers noticed freshly disturbed soil in a wheat field and dug the spot.
Police said the girl was found naked with multiple injury marks, and initial post-mortem findings suggested sexual assault followed by murder.
Forensic evidence, including nail scrapings and DNA samples, has been preserved for detailed examination, police said.
Police have also found mud-stained clothes from the house of the neighbor they have detained, which have been sent for forensic analysis.
Tension flared in the village after the discovery of the body, with angry residents briefly blocking police from taking the body for a post-mortem, demanding immediate justice.
Multiple teams, headed by senior officers including DCP (South) Deependra Chowdry, have been formed to crack the case, ACP (Law and Order) Vipin Tada said.
"Key evidence has been collected, and one suspect has been detained. The case will be solved soon," the ACP added.