In Bihar’s Gaya district scores of people took on to the street to protest against the alleged kidnapping and murder of a 16-year-old girl. The victim’s family claim that the police did not take timely action in the case which could have averted the incident. While the family demand quick justice for the victim, the police say that the probe is underway.
On December 28, the minor girl went missing. The family alleged that the girl was kidnapped when she had gone out in the evening. According to the local media reports, on January 6, the girl’s body was found in bushes near Baksaria Tola, which is close to the Buniyadganj Police Station, Gaya. The report says that her body was found beheaded and in a mutilated condition. The family of the victim has further alleged that the girl had several injury marks on her body and acid was also thrown at her. Following the incident, protests started against this heinous act, many marched together near to Manpur Durgastand, Gaya on January 9 and will conduct a similar demonstration today as well.
What Family Alleged
While speaking to The Logical Indian, Moti Lal Prasad (name changed), a close relative to the girl’s family said that the girl went out on December 28, and never returned. “Our girl after receiving pocket money of Rs 5 from her father, went out to buy something for her at around 6 pm on Friday. Since then, she never returned”, he said. Adding to that the girl’s relative said, “We waited for two days to check on other relatives and friends. It is quite a trend here that girls elope with their male friends to get married. But eventually, they (eloped couples) return within two to three days, we did not negate that possibility as well. But when we did not get any information about her, we then approached the police.”
The family alleges that when they went to the Buniyadganj police station to file a missing report. The cops did not take the complaint seriously and believed it to be a case of elopement. According to the relative, the police asked the family to come later to file the complaints. “We went to the station, but the cops did not register the missing report. The main Daroga (inspector) of the police station asked us to write an application. However, the police did take our application, but no FIR was registered then.”
He further said, “Ham to unpadh hai, hame police ka kaam ni pata, hame jo bola humne wo kiya (We are illiterate, we do not know the way police works. We did what the cops asked us to do),” lamented Moti Lal while talking to us.
FIR lodged after six days
The family later approached the local media to seek their help. Following which, the local media reached out to the police to inquire about the matter. “When the media inquired about the FIR copy and other details of the case, the inspector then called us to the police station to file an FIR.” On January 4, an FIR was registered.
Lal also added that when they later approached the police to check up on the case, they were told that the investigation is going on. “After few days, we were told that her body has been recovered from the bushes,” Lal said.
What Police Say
The Logical Indian also spoke to Buniyadganj, Sub Inspector Manoj Kumar who said the investigations are still going on in the case and we are not leaving any possible angle to inquire the case. He added, “Seven people were called to the police station last night for inquiry, and more are likely to come.”
On asking about the reason behind the death, he said that body was sent for a postmortem on January 6, and only after the autopsy report is out, they can say anything. The police claimed that after the FIR was lodged, they called the victim’s family multiple times to record their statement, but the family kept on making excuses to escape the statement. However, the family have denied the police claims. Meanwhile, the Deputy Superintendent of Police has met the victim’s kin and have ensured them that the culprits would be held soon.
Also Read: Bihar: 17-Yr-Old Saves Mother From Being Raped, Dies After Beaten By Accused