BJP leader's daughter found hanging from tree with eye gouged out

In a horrifying incident reported from Jharkhand’s Palamu district, the dead body of a 16-year-old girl was found hanging from a tree in Lalimati forest. The victim’s right eye was gouged out before she was murdered, said the police.

The victim, a native of Budhabar village which falls under the jurisdiction of Panki police station, was the daughter of a local BJP leader. She was a Class 10 student.

The girl's dead body was cremated at the local crematorium on Wednesday. She was the eldest of the five children.

A initial investigation of call data records of a mobile phone recovered from the crime scene has resulted in the arrest of one Pradeep Kumar Singh Dhanuk (23) in connection with the crime. Dhanuk, the key suspect, is a married man and could have had associates, said the police.

As maintained by the victim's family, she went missing after leaving home at 10 am on 7th June.

The girl's family had lodged a missing complaint on Tuesday. The police were looking for her when locals found her corpse hanging from a tree in the forest, he added.

The victim's body was found suspended from a tree, with her right eye gouged out. Officials are of the opinion that she was mercilessly beaten before she was killed and hung her body from a tree in order to make it look like a suicide case.

Her dead body was sent to the Medini Rai Medical College in Medininagar for an autopsy on Wednesday. The girl's family alleged that she was sexually assaulted.

Palamu Superintendent of Police, Sanjeev Kumar said the autopsy report will exibit if this is a case of rape followed by murder.

"The police is investigating the matter from all possible angles," SP Kumar said, adding that initial proof show that the victim might have been involved with a man.

"The victim's family was strongly opposed to it. There is information about a heated exchange of words and scuffle between the family and the victim a few days back, after which the victim went missing," SP Kumar said.

In the meantime, Jharkhand BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo said the party would demand an independent probe if the investigation is not able to calm the grieving family's uncertainty.

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