Pune man kidnaps and rapes two minor girls, later drowns them in water-filled drum

The two sisters went missing on Wednesday afternoon after they went out to play on the locality. The accused lived in the house above theirs.

An illustration of 'Stop Rape' is seen here. 

Credit: iStock Photo 

Mumbai: In a horrific incident, two minor girls were kidnapped, raped and brutally murdered by a 54-year-old man in the Rajgurunagar area of Pune.

The incident sparked a public outrage and snowballed into a political issue.

The accused, identified as one Ajay Das, a local cook, has been arrested by the Pune police.

The two victims, aged nine and eight, come from humble background.

The two sisters went missing on Wednesday afternoon after they went out to play on the locality.

After the search did not yield anything, the parents approached the Khed police station under the jurisdiction of Pune Rural police and lodged a complaint.

The accused stays in the floor over the victims' house.

After the police carried out a search of the locality on Wednesday night, they made a shocking discovery.

The bodies of the two girls were found in a huge drum filled with water with heads down - suggesting forcible drowning.

The FIR has been registered under provisions of Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita and Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act.

The bodies were sent to the government-run Sassoon Hospital in Pune for post-mortem.

The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi slammed the Devendra Fadnavis-led Maha Yuti-NDA dispensation over the incident.

"The Pune incident shows that the law and order is deteriorating in Maharashtra. The criminals are moving fearlessly and this is a sign of government's failure," said Congress MLA and former minister Vijay Wadettiwar.