10-yr-old girl raped, murdered in Bhadrak

Bhadrak: A 10-year-old girl was allegedly raped and murdered in Bhadrak district, triggering a massive outrage with locals demolishing the accused’s house, police said on Wednesday. Bhadrak SP Manoj Kumar Rout said one accused person was arrested from Jagatsinghpur district.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced a financial assistance of Rs 10 lakh for the next of kin of the victim, and directed officials to ensure proper investigation and “strictest possible punishment” for the accused in accordance with the law. The Opposition parties, BJD and Congress, separately called six-hour Chandbali block bandh from 6 am on Thursday in protest against the incident.

The incident came to light after some people found the body of the minor near a bush at Baligaon in Chandbali police station area on Tuesday evening, police said. The victim had gone to school on Tuesday morning and when she did not return in the afternoon, her family lodged a police complaint. Hours after a missing case was filed, locals found her body in a pool of blood.

The BJD’s Chandbali MLA, Byomakesh Ray, condemned the incident. Angry locals staged a protest in Chandbali, while BJD workers demonstrated outside the Chief Minister’s official residence in Bhubaneswar. The Opposition party accused the BJP government of failing to contain incidents of sexual assaults on women and girls across the State.

As soon as the news about the incident spread, locals hit the streets on Tuesday night. The agitation intensified on Wednesday morning, with protesters blocking roads in at least three places in Chandbali. They also gheraoed the local police station. When the accused was identified, enraged locals stormed his house in Rampalli village and demolished it.

“Police arrested the prime accused within 24 hours of the incident,” the SP said, adding he has been personally monitoring the case. Heavy deployment of security forces has been made in the area, with the SP appealing to people not to take the law into their hands.

The CMO, in an X post, said, “Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has expressed profound grief over the unprecedented incident at Chandbali in Bhadrak district and offered prayers for the departed soul’s eternal peace.” “The Hon’ble Chief Minister has directed that the incident be properly investigated and the culprits be awarded the severest possible punishment in accordance with the law, while announcing assistance of Rs 10 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the next of kin of the victim,” it added.

Deputy Chief Minister Pravati Parida, who is also in charge of the Women and Child Development department, said that strict action will be taken. “The accused involved in the Chandbali case was swiftly arrested. The government is working to prevent such heinous crimes. Social awareness must also be created,” she said.

Law Minister Pritihiviraj Harichandan said police have been given a free hand to take stringent action regarding crimes against women. “Under the BJP government, accused in such cases are arrested within 48-72 hours. No accused is able to escape arrest. We have full faith that the police will do justice in the Chandbali incident as well,” he said.

DIG (Eastern Range) Pinak Mishra said a team of doctors are conducting post-mortem examination and a scientific team is collecting evidence. “We will take the case to its logical conclusion,” he said.

The girl’s father alleged that his daughter was raped and murdered and her body dumped in the bush. Locals alleged that the roadside shops erected on encroached land have been selling liquor and other intoxicants, leading to a rise in crimes in the area. Police have started clearing the encroachments from the area, the SP said. Tehsildar Bhabatosh Mallik said the unauthorised shops are being evicted from the encroached lands.