india

Updated: May 01, 2019 14:12 IST

A 12-year-old girl is suspected to have been raped and killed in a busy tourist spot in Bhopal, police officials said. The police have taken the girl’s aunt and two young men known to her into custody.

The girl’s body was found in the morning at Manuabhan, a small hillock and a popular tourist spot. The girl had had been reported missing at the Koh-e-Fiza police station on Tuesday evening by her parents after she did not return home from tuition.

The girl’s parents have alleged that the tragedy could have been averted had prompt action been taken by the police.

DIG Irshad Wali said that the rape is yet to be confirmed as they have not received the post mortem report but acknowledged that there were scratch marks on the girl’s body. “We have picked up the girl’s aunt and two youths who lived in the girl’s neighbourhood and were familiar with the aunt,” the DIG said.

Former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said he was saddened by the tragedy. BJP Bhopal candidate Sadhvi Pragya said she was stunned by the incident.