Kandhamal, July 30: A 10 year-old girl was found dead under mysterious circumstances in Phulbani town of Odisha's Kandhamal district last night.
According to reports, the minor was found hanging from the door latch of her house while she was home alone with her cousin brother, who is also a minor.
Her parents, who lived in Peon Pada in Phulbani town, had gone out in the evening. To their utter shock, they returned to find their minor daughter hanging at the entrance of the house.
Though the exact cause of her death is yet to be ascertained, the deceased’s parents alleged that she was killed by her cousin.
"I went out with my wife and elder daughter around 5 pm," the minor's father told reporters.
"I dropped my wife at the sewing centre and my daughter at her tuition class. My younger daughter and my nephew were at home. When we returned around 7:30 pm, we found my younger daughter's body hanging from the main door latch. She was too young to take her own life. I believe she was murdered," he added.
Upon receiving the information, police arrived at the scene and recovered the body. Subsequently, it was sent to the District Headquarters Hospital (DHH) for postmortem.
A case has been registered and the exact cause of death will be determined after the autopsy. Further investigation into the matter is underway to ascertain the sequence of events that led to the mysterious death, said the police.
