12-year-old Kalyan girl kidnapped, murdered: Main accused, his third wife arrested

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A day after the body of a 12-year-old girl was found following her kidnapping from Kalyan in Thane district of Maharashtra, police arrested the main accused in the case on Wednesday along with his third wife and another person, news agency PTI reported.

The girl was kidnapped from Kalyan on Monday afternoon, and her body was discovered the next morning near Bhiwandi in the district, said officers.

"The main accused, identified as Vishal Gawli, was apprehended from Shegaon in Buldhana district on Wednesday morning," Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone-III Kalyan) Atul Zende told reporters.

He was arrested by a team of police from Kalyan and is being brought back to the area, Zende said.

"Gawli, a bearded man, was at his in-laws' place in Buldhana, and he was picked up when he was stepping out of a salon after getting his beard shaved in a bid to conceal his identity," Zende said.

The third wife of the prime accused and one other person have also been arrested in connection with the crime, reported PTI.

'Child was kidnapped while playing outside her house in Kalyan'

"His wife, Sakshi, who works in a bank, was arrested on Wednesday. Following her arrest, she was produced before a local magistrate, who remanded her in police custody for two days," the police officer stated.

"The girl was kidnapped around 4 pm on Monday when she was playing outside her house at Kolsewadi in Kalyan town. Her body was found near the wall of a graveyard at Bapgaon near Bhiwandi at around 10 am on Tuesday," Zende said.

The motive behind the murder remains unclear, he added, noting that the police have so far interrogated around 10 people, including the relatives and friends of the accused.

A police officer earlier stated that they were waiting for the post-mortem report, and if rape is confirmed, further legal sections will be added to the case.

An autorickshaw used in the crime has also been seized by the police, he added.

The police are examining various CCTV footages and investigating whether more individuals were involved in the crime, he said, adding that the investigation was being conducted from all angles.

Gawli was a resident of Kolsewadi, and there were previous criminal cases, including property-related offences, registered against him, the officer stated.

"Our priority is to first put the accused behind bars and then review all the cases against him," he added.

Asked if the accused, who had married three times, was a pervert, the officer said the investigation was also looking into this aspect.

The girl's parents had filed a missing person complaint at Kolsewadi Police Station in Kalyan on Monday evening after searching for her for several hours.

The police initially registered a first information report (FIR) under Section 137 (kidnapping) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and launched a search to trace the girl.

After the body was discovered, Section 103(1) (murder) of BNS was added to the case, Kolsewadi's senior police inspector Ashok Kadam told PTI.

"We are waiting for the post-mortem report, and if rape is detected, other penal sections will be added to the FIR," Kadam added.

Meanwhile, hundreds of locals with their mouths covered with black cloth took out a protest march in Kolsewadi area of Kalyan (East), carrying banners and placards demanding stringent action against the accused.

Locals, most of them women, called for capital punishment for the accused.

(With PTI inputs)