Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan expressed deep sorrow and shame over the rape and murder of a five-year-old girl near Kochi on Sunday (July 30), urging the government to take the strictest possible action against the accused, news agency PTI reported. Hundreds of mourners paid their respects at the child's school and burial site, with many demanding the death penalty for the perpetrator, it added.
"It is most unfortunate. I feel sad and so ashamed. The government may not be able to prevent everything, but the duty of the government is to take stringent possible action against those responsible so that they become an example and nobody in future dares to do such a thing ever again," Khan was quoted as saying by PTI.
The accused, a migrant worker from Bihar who lived in the same building as the victim's family, was remanded in judicial custody for 14 days by a magisterial court. The prosecution is seeking his detention for seven days, and the case will be heard on Monday by a special POCSO court, the report said.
According to the report, the girl was abducted, brutally raped, and killed on Friday, allegedly by the Bihar migrant worker who lived in the same block as the child's family, who were also from the same state.
On Saturday, her body was discovered in a sack in a marshy area behind a local market in Kochi's nearby Aluva area, it added.
Opposition Parties Condemn Incident, Seek Accountability From Govt And Police
Both the opposition Congress-led UDF and the BJP condemned the incident, blaming the state government and police for failing to prevent the tragedy. According to the report, the parties demanded that migrant workers and those with criminal records be properly counted. In response, the Kerala government is considering making migrant worker registration mandatory, it said.
According to K Surendran, president of the BJP's Kerala unit, there should be a system in place to identify any criminal elements among the migrant workers, as well as the alleged use of drugs by some of them.
"No monitoring system is in place. People want a policing system modelled after the one in Uttar Pradesh. Kerala's police force is severely understaffed. A thorough investigation is not being conducted," he was quoted as saying by PTI.
Outrage, Fear Grips Community As Demands For Justice And Child Safety Rise:
The community was deeply affected by the victim's brutal rape and murder, with many demanding the harshest punishment for the accused. Parents expressed concern for their children's safety, urging the government and police to remain vigilant in the future to prevent similar incidents.
Several women present at the school and the cemetery, including mothers of the victim's playmates and classmates, sobbed and said that keeping the accused in jail and feeding him would not be justice to the child.
"He should be executed in the same manner in which he killed the child. If the government is unable to do so, turn him over to the public," they told PTI. Another woman called it a "shocking and heart-wrenching" incident.
The incident sparked public outrage, with some advocating for a policing system modelled after the Uttar Pradesh model to improve law enforcement. Kerala police chief Shaik Darvesh Saheb denied any mistakes and apologised on social media for their inability to reunite the child with her parents, the report said.
'Sorry Daughter': Kerala Police Tenders Apology
Kerala Police tendered an apology following the incident. The police took to Twitter and wrote, "Sorry daughter. Our efforts to bring Chandini alive to her parents were unsuccessful. The child was kidnapped. The accused was arrested."