BJP Expels Uttarakhand Leader Arrested In Alleged Teen Rape, Murder Case

A BJP leader from Uttarakhand, Aditya Raj Saini, has been expelled from the party after he was arrested in connection with the rape and murder of a 13-year-old girl in Haridwar. A nominated member of the Other Backward Classes Commission, he has also been removed from that post.

A case was registered against the leader after the girl's family accused him of rape and murder. Aditya Raj Saini had sought a party ticket in the last assembly polls.

The girl had gone missing three days ago. Her body was found along the highway in the Bahadrabad area near the Patanjali Research Centre yesterday. Her mother alleged that she was gangraped by the BJP leader and his accomplice before being murdered, the police said.

After the girl had failed to return home, the family called on her cellphone. It was picked by the BJP leader, who said she was with him. The phone got switched off after that, the woman said in her complaint.

The next morning, she went to the home of Aditya Raj Saini, where Amit Saini also lived. But she did not find her daughter there.

On being told that her next stop would be the police station, the BJP leader threatened that he would kill her, she said in the complaint.

After the body was found, the two men were charged with gang rape and murder under relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, reported news agency Press Trust of India, quoting local police officer Pramendra Dobhal.

Five police teams have been formed for the investigation, PTI quoted him as saying.

(With PTI)