The girl was allegedly taken to a field and raped when her parents were not home (Representational)
A seven-year-old girl was allegedly raped and strangled to death by a 22-year-old man in a village in Haryana's Palwal district, the police said. The accused has been arrested, they added.
The incident occurred on Monday when the girl's neighbour - Anand - lured her to a nearby field when her parents were not at home and committed the crime. He then dumped the body in a pit, the police said.
When the girl's parents returned home and didn't find her, they lodged a missing report with the police who then found her body.
During investigation, it was found that Anand was the only person in their locality to have skipped work on the day of the incident.
He was detained and subjected to "intense questioning", during which he confessed to the crime, a police official said.
The girl's parents are daily wagers, who hail from Madhya Pradesh, the police said, adding that the accused, a labourer, belongs to the same state, Station House Officer (SHO) Preetam Singh said.
A case has been registered against him under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code for rape and kidnapping and relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.