Ranchi, May 8 The Jharkhand government on Friday submitted to the high court a report on the investigation into the alleged rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl in Hazaribagh.
The girl was allegedly strangled in a sacrificial ritual in Kusumbha village by an occultist with her mother's help.
The bench of Justices Sujit Narayan Prasad and Sanjay Prasad was hearing a public interest litigation initiated suo motu based on media reports of the victim's death last month.
A report of the investigation conducted by the police, along with that of the examination of the deceased's clothes, the forensic laboratory probe and materials recovered from the crime scene, was presented to the court.
After reviewing the report, the bench scheduled a detailed hearing in the matter for May 11.
Advocate Hemant Kumar Shikarwar informed the bench that the victim's mother, a daily wage earner at a brick kiln, was being threatened to tamper with the evidence.
Considering the sensitivity of the matter and the injuries to the girl's private parts, the high court took serious note of the matter and directed the Hazaribag superintendent of police to monitor the investigation.
The police had arrested the victim's mother, Reshmi Devi (35), Shanti Devi (55), an occultist, and 40-year-old Bhim Ram.
According to the police, Reshmi Devi often visited an occultist in her village for the treatment of her youngest son, who suffers from some mental and physical issues.
"The occult practitioner told the mother that they needed to sacrifice a virgin girl to cure the son of all ailments," a senior police official had said.
The officer had said that on March 24, when the entire village was immersed in festive celebrations on Ram Navami, the girl was strangled at the house of Shanti Devi, allegedly by her own mother and Bhim Ram.
The police claimed that the tantrik inserted a wooden stick inside the girl's private parts, while Bhim Ram struck her head to get the blood for the ritual.
They then buried her body in a garden. Earlier, the girl's mother said that her daughter was abducted, and her body was found in a field on March 25.
The opposition BJP staged a 12-hour bandh in Hazaribagh on Monday to protest against the killing.
