Six-year-old girl allegedly raped, murdered in Andhra Pradesh's Prakasam district; accused in custody

A six-year-old girl was allegedly raped and murdered by a 25-year-old man in Andhra Pradesh’s Prakasam district late on Sunday night, police said, adding that the accused was taken into custody for questioning.Police have taken up an investigation into the incident. Further details, including the findings of the post-mortem examination and the formal charges against the accused, are awaited. (Representational Image: PTI)The incident occurred in Chadalawada village of Naguluppalapadu mandal, where the girl was staying with her grandmother while her parents were away in Hyderabad for construction work.The incidentAccording to the police, the accused, a resident of the same locality, allegedly took the girl, who was sleeping along with her grandmother outside her house, to an isolated place nearby and assaulted her sexually.“The child sustained severe bleeding during the assault, and the accused allegedly smothered her to death to prevent the crime from coming to light. Subsequently, he placed the girl’s body on a chair near her house at around 2 am in the wee hours of Monday, before fleeing the scene,” the police said.The grandmother, who noticed the girl lying unconscious in the chair, alerted the neighbours. They immediately rushed the girl to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared her dead.The villagers searched for the accused and caught him in the early hours of Monday, thrashed him and handed him over to the police. “We have taken him into custody for questioning. He was said to be under the influence of cannabis at the time of committing the crime,” a police official said.Police have taken up an investigation into the incident. Further details, including the findings of the post-mortem examination and the formal charges against the accused, are awaited.Family protestsThe family members of the girl and villagers staged a protest by placing her body on the Ongole–Chirala main road near Chadalawada. They demanded strict action against the accused and refused to disperse until the authorities responded to their demands.The road blockade caused a major traffic disruption, with vehicles stranded for nearly three kilometres on both sides of the road.Senior police officials from Ongole reached the spot and held discussions with the protesters. The blockade was called off after officials reportedly assured the family and villagers that a murder case would be registered along with charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.They also assured them that the case would be pursued through a fast-track court and that government assistance would be extended to the victim’s family.The girl’s body was subsequently shifted to the Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) hospital in Ongole for a post-mortem examination and other formalities.