The spate of incidents of rape of minors in Uttar Pradesh doesn’t seem to stop any time soon. Child abuse is on rise and severe punishment plays no deterrent for perpetrators.

In yet another case reported from Yogi Adityanath-ruled Uttar Pradesh, an 11-year-old girl was raped and murdered in Unnao district. The incident took place on June 21.

The girl was sleeping outside her house and when her father woke up in the middle of the night looking for her, she was found missing.

"Initially, I thought that she might have gone to nearby fields to go to the toilet. However, when she did not return for long, I along with my family and neighbours launched a search and found my daughter's body lying in an orchard. Her head was badly crushed with bricks," he told IANS.

Representational Image

The girl’s naked body bore injury marks around her neck and private parts and her body was found later.

A case of of rape and murder under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) has been registered. Her body has been sent for post-mortem.

While a total of 89,423 crimes against children under Indian Penal Code, local and special laws were reported across India in 2014, the figure jumped to 94,172 in 2015 and reached 1,06,958 in 2016.

Around 1,700 children were murdered in 2016, while the number of infanticide and foeticide stood at 93 and 144, respectively. More than 800 children were abandoned.