Nayagarh minor raped before her murder: SIT to Orissa HC

BHUBANESWAR: Nearly five months after the alleged abduction and murder of a five-year-old girl in Nayagarh district and almost two weeks since a special investigation team (SIT) took over the probe, investigators now claim the minor was raped before she was killed.
The SIT made this startling disclosure before the Orissa high court on Wednesday through an affidavit. The state government had requested the high court to monitor the investigation.The revelation comes on a day she would have turned 6 had she been alive.
“We found semen stains on her cloth that was recovered by Nayagarh Sadar police on July 23. Her dress was sent for forensic examination. This clearly indicates she was sexually assaulted before the murder,” a senior officer said.
SIT sources said the accused has been identified and would be arrested soon. The accused belong to the same village where the deceased was staying, a source said.
“Though the autopsy report earlier could not ascertain the fact that she had been sexually assaulted as the body had become decomposed, the rape angle was never ruled out. Presence of semen stains on her dress has only lend credence to the sexual assault angle,” the officer added.
Her father was inconsolable after learning that she was subjected to sexual assault before being murdered.

How could the local police cover up such an inhuman crime against a child? I also suspect there could be an organ theft racket behind my daughter’s murder. The police and state government have been trying to protect cabinet minister Arun Sahoo, whose close associates killed my daughter,” the girl's father alleged.
The revelation has raised question mark on the previous investigation carried out by the local police before the five-member SIT, headed by inspector general (crime) Arun Bothra, took over the probe on November 28. The other four members are from the state Crime Branch.
The Nayagarh Sadar police had registered a case of abduction after the child went missing while playing outside her house on July 14. Her skeletal remains were found near her home on July 23. The abduction case turned into a murder investigation after the DNA test confirmed the skeletal remains belonged to the missing girl. But the local police failed to unravel the mystery surrounding the child’s disappearance and killing.
On December 3, the high court had come down heavily on Odisha Police for poor investigation into the Nayagarh’s girl's murder case and asked the SIT for an expeditious probe.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)