LUCKNOW: Women protesting against cops' refusal to file an FIR on a missing six-year-old child were beaten up pitilessly by policemen in Aligarh on Thursday, with TV cameras recording the stomach-turning visuals of several activists brutalized by men in uniform.

The child, who'd gone missing on Wednesday, was later found dead. This led to angry women and men taking to the streets demanding action against cops who had refused to take down the complaint, and instead asking the parents to look for their kid themselves.

Later, Aligarh senior superintendent of police Amit Pathak admitted the police had mishandled the protest and the circle officer of Banna Devi was transferred. Two junior officers were suspended.

On Thursday morning, the discovery of the girl's body in a garbage dump triggered large-scale resentment in the area. It was alleged she was sexually assaulted before being strangled, which added to the anger among family members and their neighbors. Cops reached the spot to videograph the crime scene and complete other formalities.

However, angry women insisted that they were treated badly and blamed the police for the girl's death. They said had cops acted on the parents' complaint, her life could have been saved.

Top police officers learnt about the incident only through TV channels, that broadcast the footage of women being beaten up almost incessantly on Thursday afternoon. On their part, cops said they were outnumbered with crowd hurling stones at them. By the time additional forces reached the protest site with senior officers, mob frenzy had damaged police vehicles and wounded at least three policemen. Rumors of police firing added to the crises, triggering panic in localities around the Banna Devi.

After initial attempts of the police to scatter the mob by using force proved futile, the force lobbed teargas shells at the crowed, forcing them to disperse. Subsequently, the people gathered once again and blocked the Aligarh-Grand Trunk Road demanding action against the erring cops who refused to register a missing complaint by child's family on Wednesday.