A nine-month-old baby, sleeping next to her parents on the terrace of their rented accommodation, was abducted, sexually assaulted and gagged by a man who lived in a nearby street.
The incident that shocked everyone happened in the Hanmakonda town of Telangana state just after midnight of Tuesday.
The police, who confirmed the sexual assault on the child, are waiting for the postmortem report from the MGM Hospital in Warangal.
According to the child's relatives, a man identified as Praveen (28) was found assaulting the child at a desolated area.
They said he gagged her when they tried to raise alarm. The baby's relatives then caught hold of the accused and handed him over to the police.
However, the culprit told the police that the child slipped from his hand and died. The police have booked him under IPC sections 376 (Rape), 302 (Murder) and relevant sections of POCSO.
The gory incident happened on Tailor Street at Hanmakonda where mostly labourers and daily wage workers live.
The parents of the child were asleep on the terrace of a two-storied building when Praveen allegedly picked up the child.
The child was bleeding profusely and was unconscious when the parents found her. They rushed her to a nearby hospital but the doctors confirmed that she was brought in dead.
Meanwhile, several women's and children's organisations across the state staged protests demanding the highest degree of punishment for Praveen.
Child Rights protection organization 'Balala Hakkula Sangham', in a statement, demanded that the home minister visit the place to instill confidence in people regarding the law and order situation.
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