The Central Bureau of Investigation on Tuesday arrested eight policemen for the custodial death of a person who was accused of raping and murdering a minor in Shimla district, ANI reported. The arrested include Inspector General of Police Zahoor H Zaidi and Deputy Superintendent of Police Manoj Joshi.
On July 4, six men had raped and murdered a 16-year-old schoolgirl in Kothkai in Shimla district. The accused had offered her a lift when she was returning from school. They then took her to a nearby forest, where they allegedly raped her before killing her. The girl’s body was found two days later on July 6. Police had arrested six people – four Nepali nationals and two from Uttarakhand – on July 14.
On July 18, Rajendra Singh, the main accused in the case, allegedly killed his accomplice Suraj Singh in prison. The death had triggered violent protests in the district. On July 20, shops, schools and business establishments remained shut as part of the protest against the alleged gangrape and subsequent custodial death.
All the police station officials had been suspended after it was found that the station house inspector had lodged the six accused in two cells, instead of keeping them separately. The Central Bureau of Investigation had set up a Special Investigation Team to probe the girl’s rape and murder, as well as the custodial death cases on July 23.
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