Gujarat: Labourer held for raping and killing minor girl

A 24-year-old labourer was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly raping and killing an eight-year-old girl and dumping her body in a drain in Anand district of Gujarat a day before, police said.

The accused, identified as Arjun Gohil, allegedly lured the girl from outside her house in Kanisa village in Khambhat taluka on Monday under the pretext of buying her fire crackers, said police sub-inspector N M Rami.

He then raped her in an isolated area on the outskirts of the village and strangled her with his hands to destroy evidence.

The body of the girl was spotted lying in an open drain near a temple on Monday night, he said.

The sub-inspector said some villagers had spotted Gohil along with the girl before she went missing.

"Since some villagers had seen Gohil with the girl, her parents went to Gohil's house and confronted him on her whereabouts," he said, adding that Gohil was arrested on Tuesday from a place near Kanisa village.

Postmortem report has confirmed that the girl was first raped before she was strangled.

"The accused lured the victim with the promise of buying her fire crackers. After raping her, he killed her fearing that she might identify himself and he will be arrested by police. He then dumped her body into an open drain," the PSI added.