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Updated: Jun 07, 2019 14:36 IST

Police have constituted a special investigative team (SIT) and suspended five of its officials amid widespread condemnation of the brutal murder of a three-year-old child in Tappal town of Uttar Pradesh, news agency ANI has reported.

The body of the child, mutilated and eyes gouged out, was found on June 2 in Tappal, around 50km from Aligarh, sparking widespread condemnation and protests in the area.

“An SIT has been formed under the superintendent of police rural area (SPRA). A forensic science team, special operation group (SOG) and a team of experts are also in the SIT to conduct an investigation on a fast track basis. POCSO Act will also be there in the case,” ADG (Law&Order) Anand Kumar was quoted as saying by ANI.

Also Read | 2-year-old UP girl strangled, eyes gouged out over unpaid loan: Police

Aligarh’s senior superintendent of police Aakash Kulhari said earlier in the day that one inspector, three sub-inspectors and one constable have been suspended for not tracking the child on a priority basis.

Two men - Zahid and Aslam - have been arrested in connection with the crime against the child, whose body was found from a garbage dump near her house three days after she went missing from Tappal on May 31.

The girl’s father said other family members of the accused should also be arrested as the crime could not have been carried out without their knowledge.

He claimed he had borrowed Rs 40,000 from Zahid. Of the total amount, he had returned Rs 35,000 but was threatened by him when he sought more time to pay the remaining Rs 5,000.

The distraught father of the victim threatened he would start a fast-unto-death if no further arrests were made.

Several Congress leaders, including party president Rahul Gandhi and general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, have called for justice as Twitter erupted with protests on Friday.

“The horrific murder of a little girl in Aligarh, UP has shocked and disturbed me. How can any human being treat a child with such brutality? This terrible crime must not go unpunished. The UP police must act swiftly to bring the killers to justice,” Rahul Gandhi tweeted.

“The brutal murder in Aligarh is yet another inhuman, unspeakable crime against an innocent child. I cannot even begin to imagine the pain her parents must feel. What has become of us?” Priyanka Gandhi Vadra posted on Twitter.

Also read : Accused to be booked under NSA after toddler killed, eyes gouged out in UP

Aligarh Police said post-mortem examination has not found any sign of sexual assault but samples have been sent to the forensic laboratory in Agra. The lab might take about a week to give its report whether the child was raped before the killing, Kulhari said.

The family of the girl has been demanding an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the matter.

Police have said they will recommend that the two men arrested should be booked under the National Security Act (NSA). A person can be imprisoned for up to a year without being charged under the NSA.