The body of a 10-year-old who went missing on Thursday was recovered near Sulur in the Kannampalayam lake area in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.
Police have now arrested a 33-year-old man, Karthik, and his aide, Mohan Raj, in relation to the kidnapping and murder.
The girl, a class 4 student, was last seen playing near her house on Thursday evening. Parents and neighbours began a search after she went missing.
Locals spotted a body floating near a thicket in Kannampalayam pond on Friday evening. The tank was located around 1.5 kilometres behind the girls’ home.
Police said that the girl had gone near a grocery shop near her home when she was abducted on a two-wheeler by Kartik.
Police sources say that the child may have been sexually assaulted before her body was abandoned, The Indian Express reported.
The victim's parents and members of the community staged a protest on Sulur Road on Friday, which lasted until early Saturday.
The Singanallur and Sulur police reassured the protesters that strict action would be taken against the accused.
According to ADGP Maheshwar Dayal and IG Ramya Bharathi, Karthik was a tenant in the same compound where the girls’ family lived. He had recently moved to another house. The man was acquainted with the girl.
Meanwhile, the victim's family insisted that Chief Minister Vijay show support for the family, Daily Thanti reported. They also stressed that culprit be given severe punishment so that such an incident do not happen to any girl in the future.
