IDUKKI: Arjun, the accused in the case of raping and killing a six-year-old minor girl in Vandiperiyar, has been acquitted. Acquitting the accused, the Kattappana Fast Track Court said the murder and rape could not be proved. The body was found hanging inside an estate lane in Vandiperiyar on June 30 in 2021.

The police found that the accused had been sexually exploiting the minor since she was three years old after luring her with chocolates. Statements of witnesses were also obtained to confirm this. The police submitted the charge sheet within 78 days. The girl’s relatives protested the court verdict.

Meantime, the accused blamed the police for producing fake witnesses in the court. He demanded a re-investigation to find the real culprits. The investigating officer informed that would examine the possibility of an appeal.

The high court had sought an explanation regarding the serious lapse from the side of the police in preparing the charge sheet in the case of the girl being raped and killed. The court found that the police did not charge the accused under the Scheduled Castes - Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Harassment Act and sought an explanation from the government regarding the failure of the police' investigation.

The omission of some clauses in the charge sheet which are added to get the maximum punishment for the accused, led to suspicion.

The police ignored the request of the girl's family to add Section 325 of the SC-ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, which was supposed to be imposed if a girl of the Scheduled Caste was raped. With this, the girl's family had lost the financial assistance they were supposed to get from the government.