Bettiah: Body of a 15-year-old girl was found in a sugar cane field under Shikarpur police station area of West Champaran district on Sunday night.The girl, Khushi Kumari, daughter of Ritesh Sahni and a resident of D K Shikarpur, had been missing since Saturday morning. According to family members, she left home around 10am on Saturday but failed to return. After being unable to trace her, the family lodged a missing person’s report at Shikarpur police station on Sunday.Shortly thereafter, information was received that a body was found in a nearby sugar cane field. The body was subsequently identified as that of Khushi.Locals said a foul smell was emanating from the body, and it appeared that parts of it had been mauled by an animal. Her mother, Amrita Devi, said Khushi had left home with a girl from the neighbourhood. Police have detained the girl and some of her family members for questioning.While the family has alleged murder and demanded strict action against those responsible, villagers have also raised concerns about the possibility of sexual assault before the killing.An FSL team visited the crime spot and collected evidence. SDPO Jayprakash Singh said, “The matter is being investigated. We are probing all angles, but the exact cause of death and the sequence of events will become clear only after the postmortem report is received.”
