JAIPUR: In a chilling case from Jaipur’s Harmada area, a five-year-old girl was allegedly murdered by her neighbour, who suspected an illicit relationship between her husband and the victim’s mother and also harboured resentment over a quarrel related to fetching water. The accused woman was arrested on Monday, less than 48 hours after the crime.The incident occurred on Saturday in Shri Shyam Vatika Colony under Harmada police station limits. According to police, the child’s father had left for work in the morning when his wife informed him around 1 pm that their daughter had gone missing. Family members and local residents searched extensively before alerting the police.During the investigation, police found that the victim frequently visited the house of neighbour Gudiya Devi (30) and played with her children. CCTV footage showed the girl entering the accused’s residence but not coming out, prompting police to search the house. The child’s body was found wrapped in a blanket and concealed inside a divan.Police said Gudiya Devi had been upset for quite some time as she suspected that the victim’s mother used to speak with her husband, Afroz alias Firoz Khan, over the phone. She was also nursing a grudge following a recent argument with the victim’s mother over fetching water. Investigators said the accused wanted to see the child’s mother suffer and had allegedly been planning the crime for several days.According to the police investigation, when the child visited her house on June 13, the accused allegedly lured her inside, removed her clothes and smothered her to death by pressing her mouth. She then wrapped the body in a blanket and hid it in the divan. Police said she had also planned to dispose of the body in a nearby forest during the night to divert suspicion and mislead investigators.A case has been registered under relevant provisions of the law, and further investigation is continuing.
