Rohtak rape, murder: Haryana Police say eight arrested

Haryana Police Monday said eight people have been arrested over the barbaric rape and murder of a 28-year-old mentally-challenged woman from Nepal near Rohtak town.

Director General of Police Y.P. Singhal, who visited the spot Monday where the body of the woman was found, said eight arrests have been made so far and investigation was in progress.

"The SIT is investigating the case. It will be cracked soon," Singhal told the media near Rohtak.

Another police officer said the arrests were made after raids were conducted in various places following some clues in the gruesome case.

Details of the arrested were not immediately known.

The woman's mutilated body was found in an agricultural field near Bahu Akbarpur village on the Rohtak-Hisar highway, about 20 km from Rohtak, by villagers Feb 4.

The post-mortem report said objects had been thrust into her private parts. Doctors said the woman was gang-raped and tortured, before being brutally killed.

The woman's skull had a fracture and her body parts had been eaten, probably by animals.

The woman had gone missing Feb 1 and her sisters and relatives had filed a complaint with police in Rohtak. However, police did not register a case nor did they launch a prompt investigation to trace her, the family alleged.

The woman had come to Rohtak from Nepal a couple of months back for treatment at the Post-Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences (PGIMS) in Rohtak.

Haryana Police, under fire from various quarters for not taking action in the matter, claimed it was conducting raids to nab the culprits.

Protests erupted in Rohtak town Sunday after details emerged of the barbaric manner in which the woman was raped and murdered. The protesters condemned police and the state government for failing to show any action being taken.

The agitators Sunday also took out a march in Rohtak town, 75 km from Delhi. The Rohtak-Delhi highway was blocked by protesters for some time.

Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Mohammad Akil said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) was probing the case.

Leader of Opposition Abhay Singh Chautala criticised the Manohar Lal Khattar government and Haryana Police for not taking action in the matter.

He said the law and order situation in Haryana was deteriorating daily.