Schoolgirl Raped and Murdered (Shocking News)

Howrah/Kolkata/India: The mutilated body of a 16-year-old schoolgirl was found at Manikjheel near Kona railway station in Howrah around 6.30 am on Wednesday. Autopsy revealed she was gangraped before being strangled. The girl was last seen with friends. Bithi Roy, a Class IX student of Aryabani Balika Vidyalaya, Howrah, and a resident of Kona’s Choudhurybagan area, allegedly left home with schoolmates on Tuesday afternoon. When she didn’t return till late in the night, her father lodged a missing diary with the local police. Police have started an investigation but no arrests have been made. The autopsy report revealed that Bithi was struck by a sharp weapon in the forehead, waist and legs before being throttled. A senior police officer said the injuries point to the fact that she put up a tough fight before being overpowered. Investigators have collected from the spot, among other things, a hair clip, a slipper belonging to Bithi and part of a chappal that may have been worn by one of her assailants. 

Police said Bithi received an SMS on the night of March 31 from one ‘Sanjayda’ warning her not to come between him and his girlfriend Madhu. Efforts are on to trace the youth. Bithi’s father Sambhu, who works in a nearby factory, told police there was a call on his daughter’s cellphone around 8.30 pm on Tuesday, which he received. It was normal for Bithi to leave behind her phone when she left home. The caller — a male — wanted to know if Bithi was at home. When Sambhu identified himself, he heard the caller speak to some other people and then disconnect. Sambhu has passed on the number to police and told investigators that some youths would tease his daughter. On Tuesday afternoon, Bithi’s family members did not suspect anything when her schoolmate Priyanka Mondal turned up at their house. Bithi left with an exercise book that she was to return to another friend. 

Priyanka Mondal, a schoolmate of murdered Bithi Roy (16), said the two had gone to a friend’s house on Tuesday to return a notebook. The three then went to the nearby Jheelpar ground. Priyanka left her friends there for a while. By the time she returned, others had joined the group. They chatted there till 5.45 pm. The friends then left for their homes. When Bithi did not return till late in the evening, Sambhu went out to look for her. When inquiries at her friends’ houses drew a blank, Bithi’s father lodged the diary at the police station. A search was launched for the girl. Priyanka told them that Bithi would occasionally chat with a local boy named Amar over the phone. Priyanka’s mother also said that Bithi would often leave her schoolbag at their home and leave for sometime. 

Amar was traced to his aunt’s home. He admitted that he used to speak to Bithi over the phone, but claimed he had never met her in person. Amar, however, revealed that Bithi had a boyfriend named Rintu, who lived nearby. The search party decided against going in search of Rintu as it was already late. Around 6.30 am, Priyanka’s mother called up Sambhu and informed him of a body lying near the station. Sambhu rushed to the spot and identified the body of his daughter. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee visited Bithi’s residence during the day and offered her condolences.