6-year-old schoolgirl gang-raped and killed by two teen brothers before their mother helps them dump child's body
A 6-year-old schoolgirl from the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh was reportedly gang-raped and strangled to death by two brothers, aged 12 and 15 before their mother helped them in dumping the child's body.
The young girl was reportedly a student in the first year of primary school and was playing near the accused family's house when she was reported missing in the afternoon.
A manhunt was launched for the girl by her family and the police when she did not return home in Lakhimpur Kheri district.
Station House Officer of Phoolbehad Police Station, Shyam Narain Singh, said that the search continued through the night and the officials eventually found her body on Wednesday, just 600ft from the boys' house, according to MirrorNowNews.
After officials zeroed down on the suspects, the two boys admitted to sexually assaulting her. "The accused told us they had lured the girl into their house with a candy," Singh said.
The mother of the two rapists also confessed that she had helped her two boys in hiding the girl's body when she found out that they had strangled her to death.
The boys reportedly worked as rag pickers in the region and the mother was a laborer.
All three of them have now been charged with murder and hiding evidence. The teenage boys have also been charged under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
The latest case comes after a 12-year-old girl was gang-raped by six men over a family dispute about the construction of a drainage channel near their house in the same sate of in Uttar Pradesh.
The men reportedly returned after the argument with the girl's family and raped her in front of them and beating them as they attempted to stop the assault.
According to a recent report compiled by gender experts, India is the worst place to be a woman in the world, outranking Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia.
The ranking considers the data on poor treatment of women in these countries and high rates of sexual violence in the region.
In the wake of rampant protests across the country, the Indian government had attempted to tighten laws, even instituting the death sentence and lengthier prison terms for sexual assault crimes. However, it has not shown a significant impact when it comes to lessening the number of rape cases in the country.