SHAHJAHANPUR: The body of a seven-year-old girl who was missing since February 8 was found in a garbage dump near Bhatan Tola colony here on Monday. Police suspect that the girl killed after being sexually assaulted as there was not a stitch of clothes on her body and there were injuries on her private parts.According to Chowk Kotwali area police, the victim’s grandmother had filed a missing complaint. The child had gone out to play in the morning on February 8 and did not return home. Later in the evening, she approached police. The girl lived with her grandmother as her father had passed away and her mother had remarried.This is the second such incident in the past 16 days in Shahjahanpur city. Earlier, an eight-year-old schoolboy was sodomised and killed allegedly by his cousin on January 26.After getting information about the crime, SP, city, Dinesh Tripathi, circle officer Brahmpal Singh along with forensic experts and a dog squad arrived at the spot for investigation. The body was first seen by a ragpicker, who informed locals and police about it. Later, the body was identified as that of the missing girl.Police said an autopsy will be done by a panel of doctors, including a woman doctor, on Tuesday.Tripathi said, “We had earlier filed an FIR under IPC section 363 (punishment for kidnapping a minor), which we normally do if a minor goes missing. There is definitely a possibility of sexual assault. The rapist may have killed her to hide his identity. We are investigating this case and the accused will be arrested soon.”Victim’s grandmother said, “We have no enmity with anyone, then how could someone kill her in such a way. I am sure that my granddaughter was raped by her killer and the accused should be arrested soon.”

Stay updated with all the Lucknow Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.