Army jawan arrested for murdering teen in Prayagraj, burying body

The accused claimed his wedding was fixed for later this month and the girl was allegedly pressuring him to marry her instead, police said. “He feared she might create problems for him, so he planned to eliminate her. He called her out, took her to a secluded forested patch near the village, stabbed her to death, and buried the body,” a police officer said.

Because the body had not been buried deep, one of the victim’s hands started to show above the surface. A local resident spotted it and immediately informed the police. Officers rushed to the site, exhumed the body, and launched a detailed investigation.

During the inquiry, police identified Harshvardhan as the prime suspect. “We have arrested Harshvardhan, and he has admitted to the crime,” a police officer said.

Investigators later learned that Harshvardhan was to be married on November 30. The accused had been on leave since November 8.

How the case was cracked

According to police, the victim’s parents lodged a kidnapping complaint on November 10 after she failed to return home from school. A search was launched immediately. Five days later, officers found her body. A short distance away, they also found the girl’s schoolbag, which contained her books as well as a box of vermillion and a mirror.

Inside one of her notebooks, the name “Deepak” was written along with a mobile number.

Police also examined CCTV footage collected from the area where the body was found and found visuals showing a man riding a motorcycle with the girl — in her school uniform — seated behind him.

Police identified the man through the vehicle’s registration number and the mobile number found in the girl’s book. Police then traced and arrested him. They also recovered the knife and the motorcycle used in the crime.

Police said investigators have retrieved the Instagram chats between the two. It came to light that they had been chatting and video-calling regularly since June, police said.

“We have arrested the accused and he will be produced before the court,” said Deputy Commissioner of Police, Prayagraj, Kuldeep Singh Gunawat.

A police officer said that during questioning, the accused claimed the girl was demanding he marry her despite his repeated attempts to dissuade her.

Police said he then devised a plan. Pretending he was ready to marry her, he asked the girl to leave home under the pretext of going to school and to come meet him.

Police said he picked her up on his motorcycle and spent several hours with her. Then, around 5 pm, he took her to a secluded spot. According to police, he allegedly stabbed the girl with a knife and dug a pit using a shovel that he found at a nearby temple to bury the body.

The accused also discarded the victim’s schoolbag about one-and-a-half to two kilometres away from the site before escaping, police added.