Relative kills 10-yr-old girl as ‘sacrifice’; cops arrest 2

Gorakhpur: A 10-year-old girl was killed by her grandmother's brother and his wife in Bhatni police station area in Deoria. However, police arrested the accused and sent them to judicial custody on Monday, said Deoria SP Sankalp Sharma at a press conference on Monday.The SP said that Anshika (10), daughter of one Awadhesh Yadav from Bharhe Choura village, accompanied her grandmother to a wedding in Behra Dabur on Nov 27. Around 5 pm, she went missing from the event. Despite frantic searches by the family and locals, she could not be traced. The next day, her blood-soaked body was discovered from dry maize stalks.Police faced resistance from angry locals before they managed to recover the body and for investigation.SP Sankalp said that police found a blood-stained vest and a shawl from the site, which were later identified as the belongings of her grandmother's brother Sheshnath Yadav and his wife Savita. During interrogation, the duo confessed to the brutal murder, revealing a shocking motive rooted in superstition.According to police, Savita claimed that in her dream, a deity instructed her to offer a young girl's sacrifice to cure her mentally-challenged son Sanjay. Seizing the opportunity during the wedding, the couple lured Anshika to an abandoned house, slit her throat, and performed a ritual using her blood.SP Sankalp Sharma said murder weapon and other evidence were recovered from the site.