Man arrested for UP girl’s murder was also accused of raping own daughter: Cop

india

Updated: Jun 08, 2019 11:05 IST

One of the two men arrested for the horrific murder of a toddler that has sparked off national outrage had been accused of raping his daughter five years ago, a police officer in Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh said.

The toddler, all of three years, was found on a garbage dump near her house by a sweeper on June 2, three days after her parents had reported her missing. But the police allegedly hadn’t bothered to act.

As the details of the horrid crime emerge, it drew widespread condemnation and outrage. Police say two men - Zahid and Aslam – have been arrested on a charge of murdering the girl over an unpaid Rs 5,000 loan.

The girl’s parents alleged the body was hidden at the home of one of the accused but later thrown onto the garbage dump because it started decomposing in the summer heat.

Her autopsy hasn’t confirmed rape yet.

Aligarh Rural superintendent of police Mahilal Patidar said the autopsy did not confirm earlier suspicions that her eyes had been gouged out. But it did indicate that 3-year-old’s right hand had been amputated. The soft tissues around her eyes had loosened and the body blackened.

Mahilal Patidar also confirmed that the wife of one of the co-accused, Aslam, had filed a case at the Tappal police station for allegedly raping his own daughter in 2014.

The toddler’s mother, who had tipped off the police about a pending rape case against Aslam said his wife had shifted out after Aslam raped his four-year-old daughter.

A Twitter hashtag of the girl’s name has gone viral, with many users demanding capital punishment in the case.

“The brutal murder in Aligarh is yet another inhuman, unspeakable crime against an innocent child,” said Priyanka Gandhi Vadra of the Congress. “What has become of us?”

Other leading politicians and sports and Bollywood stars also expressed anger on Twitter.