5-year-old girl abducted, thrown into river in Gujarat; suspect detained

Anand, Sep 1 (PTI) A five-year-old girl was allegedly abducted and thrown into a river by a man in Gujarat's Anand district, police said on Monday.

The police have detained a suspect who was last seen with the child, and a search is on for her body, an official said.

Local leaders have claimed that the suspect indulged in black magic and might have performed human sacrifice and thrown the body into the river.

The suspect has been detained, and a search is on for the girl's body, Deputy Superintendent of Police Parth Chovatiya said.

He said that the child went missing while playing outside her house in Navakhal village of Anklav taluka on the evening of August 30.

"After receiving a complaint about the missing child, Anklav police swung into action and launched a search operation. In CCTV footage, the suspect, Ajay Padhiyar, was seen taking the girl on his motorcycle. The suspect has admitted to having thrown the girl into Mini River near Umeta village," Chovatia said.

He said the suspect has not divulged any details, and no evidence of black magic has come to light.

Villagers gathered outside the Anklav police station and demanded "justice" for the girl.

Leader of Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena and Anklav resident, Sanjasinh Raj, said, "Since the suspect was earlier into superstition, locals fear that he might have handed the girl over to someone to perform human sacrifice." PTI COR PJT PD ARU