BHADRAK : The decomposed body of a nine-year-old girl was recovered on Thursday from a canal near Adia village under Basudevpur Marine police limits, four days after she was reportedly kidnapped by bike-borne miscreants.
The girl, locals said, was abducted from Adia village on September 14. Her body was recovered from the Coast canal, just 400 metre from her house, during a joint operation by the Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force (ODRAF) and the fire services personnel.
Locals said the child was abducted at around 7.30 pm on September 14 when she was walking back home with her elder sister. Two miscreants on a motorcycle reportedly abducted the girl. Her sister immediately ran home and informed their mother, who is hearing impaired, about the incident. Unable to react instantly, the mother panicked and fainted upon understanding the situation, prompting neighbours to alert the villagers.
During the incident, the girl’s father Sadanand Mallik, a fisherman, was out in the sea. On receiving news about the abduction, he rushed back home. Villagers launched a search using flashlights and sticks, while local police were alerted.
Bhadrak Sadar SDPO Bichitranand Sethi formed four special police teams to investigate the case. Subsequently, Bhadrak SP Manoj Rout and eastern range DIG Pinak Mishra visited the village and monitored the progress of the investigation.
SP Rout said, “Preliminary investigations point towards murder. The exact cause of the girl’s death will be ascertained after the postmortem report arrives. We suspect the involvement of certain individuals and are working swiftly to apprehend them.”
He further said the body has been sent to the Forensic Medicine and Toxicology department of SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack for further examination.
Meanwhile, the recovery of the girl’s body has sparked public outrage with locals raising serious questions over the effectiveness of police investigation during the crucial initial days. Sources said top officials including Rout, the Bhadrak tehsildar, Sadar SDPO and OICs of four police stations are in Adia village to take stock of the situation.