A 3-year-old girl was allegedly raped, strangled and buried in a shallow pit by neighbour Shivanath in Gurugram’s Sector 37. The Bihar native lured her from Mohammadpur Jharsa village home on Thursday evening, confessed post-arrest via CCTV evidence, police said.
The tragedy struck on Thursday, February 19, 2026, around 7 pm, when the toddler was playing outside her rented home in Mohammadpur Jharsa village, part of Gurugram’s Sector 36 area. Shivanath, a 24-to-25-year-old resident from Bihar’s Supaul district living in the same building, exploited his familiarity he often played with her to lure the child away by hand, as captured on nearby CCTV footage from shops.
He led her roughly four kilometres to a secluded empty plot behind the Sector 37 industrial area, where he committed the rape before throttling her to death and hastily burying her body in a shallow pit dug with his hands to destroy evidence.
Gurugram Police received a missing person complaint around 12:15-12:30 am on Friday, February 20, from the distraught parents, who had searched locally and spotted the suspect on CCTV. The family confronted Shivanath at his scrap collection or manufacturing firm workplace in Sector 37 and handed him over to officers at the Sector 37 police station within an hour of filing the FIR.
Swift Arrest and Confession
Under interrogation, Shivanath quickly confessed, leading police to the body between 1 am and 2 am on Friday, where forensic teams collected evidence. Gurugram Police spokesperson Sandeep Turan detailed: “The girl was playing when the accused took her at least four km away between 7 pm and 7.15 pm on Thursday and raped her. Afterwards, he throttled her, dug a shallow pit, and fled after burying the body.”
Another officer added: “During interrogation, the accused disclosed that late on Thursday evening, he lured the minor girl to a secluded place in Sector 37, where he first raped the toddler and then strangled her to death to wipe out evidence. Further questioning is underway.”
A case was registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 103(1) for murder, 137 for kidnapping, and 238(a) for causing disappearance of evidence, alongside Section 6 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act for aggravated penetrative sexual assault.
No prior complaints against the accused were noted, and investigations continue into motives, with the body sent for post-mortem.
Community Outrage and Family Grief
The incident has sparked widespread horror in Gurugram’s urban-village fringes, where migrant workers like Shivanath a scrap collector or factory hand coexist with local families. Neighbours described the child as playful and innocent, amplifying the shock of betrayal by someone known to the family.
The parents, who returned from work to find their daughter missing, are devastated; the mother panicked first, alerting her husband, leading to the frantic CCTV review and confrontation.
This case highlights vulnerabilities in rapidly urbanising areas like Sector 37, blending industrial zones with villages such as Mohammadpur Jharsa, where oversight can lapse during evening hours. Police have urged heightened parental vigilance, but locals demand better lighting, more cameras, and community watches to prevent such predations.
Broader Context of Child Safety Failures
Such brutality echoes a disturbing pattern in Haryana and beyond, with NCR regions reporting multiple child assault cases amid urban migration strains. Recent NCR incidents include assaults in neighbouring areas, underscoring gaps in swift reporting and enforcement despite POCSO mandates. Shivanath’s profile young migrant labourer mirrors offenders in prior cases, prompting calls for targeted awareness in worker hostels and factories.
Nationally, child rights groups note over 50,000 POCSO cases annually, with conviction rates lagging due to evidence challenges, though Haryana Police claim improved forensics here aided the rapid breakthrough. Experts advocate mandatory background checks for those interacting with children in shared housing and faster FIR protocols.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
This unspeakable crime shatters lives and exposes societal fractures, demanding we prioritise empathy, dialogue, and harmony to shield the innocent.
The Logical Indian condemns such savagery unequivocally, urging investments in community safety nets, kinder urban planning, and education fostering coexistence over isolation.
