Protests erupt in Kolkata over murder of minor, police vehicles vandalised

A seven-year-old girl was allegedly killed after being sexually molested by one of her neighbours in Kolkata's Tiljala area, prompting local people to blockade roads and railway tracks and vandalise police vehicles on Monday.

The girl, a resident of Kustia's Shri Dhar Roy Road, was missing since Sunday morning and after an extensive search, policemen found her body in one of the flats in an apartment block in the locality, the police said. The flat owner was arrested and the body was sent for post-mortem examination.

Alleging that the police "delayed" in searching for the missing girl, locals staged protests outside the Tiljala Police Station and carried out vandalism in the area damaging several vehicles on Sunday night demanding strict action against the culprit.

Three persons including a woman have been detained for their alleged involvement in the vandalism, a police officer said. Demanding the release of the detained persons, local people on Monday morning put up blockades on the roads of Tiljala area.

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In the afternoon, they blockaded the key EM Bypass and railway tracks in the South Sealdah section disrupting road traffic and train services. Three police vehicles were ransacked while one of them was torched, an officer said.

Locals also pelted policemen with stones when a huge team of security forces reached there in order to disperse them. "We are talking to the protestors and keeping an eye on the situation," the police officer said.

(With inputs from PTI)