Minor dies under mysterious circumstances in Uttarakhand, body exhumed

A 16-year-old girl, who had reportedly visited the hospital for an abortion, later died and was buried by her family members. When the police came to know about her mysterious death, the body was exhumed and sent for postmortem.

Bageshwar (Uttarakhand): The body of a 16-year-old girl, who was buried after dying under mysterious circumstances, was exhumed and sent for postmortem in Uttarakhand's Bageshwar district on Thursday.

According to reports, a 16-year-old girl had died under mysterious circumstances in Bhatyuda village under Kanda police station limits. The girl's family members had reportedly buried the body after her death.

On the directions of district collector Ranjana Rajguru, the body was exhumed and sent for postmortem.

The police had received information about a pregnant girl who had visited the hospital with her grandmother for an abortion, Bageshwar SP Ruchita Juyal informed. It was found that the girl was a minor, she added.

After it was found through the villagers that the girl was indeed pregnant, the police filed a case against unknown persons under sections 376 (rape) and 306 (abetment of suicide) of the IPC and the POCSO Act, based on the victim's mother's complaint.

During the investigation, the police found that the girl had died and her family had buried the body, Juyal said, adding that the family members filed no report with the police about the girl's death.

The SP said that the exact cause of death will only be known once the post-mortem is complete.

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