Arrested Bihar native already a POCSO accused five years ago, says Kerala Police
Child rape-cum-murder case
Kochi (PTI): The accused in the sensational rape and murder of a five-year-old girl in Kerala last week has a criminal history and was arrested in a POCSO case five years ago, state police said on Tuesday.
Ashfaq Alam had been in jail for one month in connection with the crime committed in New Delhi and later came out on bail, Aluva Rural Superintendent of Police Vivek Kumar told reporters here.
"He was arrested by Ghazipur police in 2018 for attempting to sexually molest a 10-year-old girl there," the SP said.
The state police came across his criminal history while conducting his background check, he said.
Police sources said they were trying to find out whether Alam, a Bihar native, had been involved in any other crimes before reaching Kerala as a migrant worker.
Meanwhile, the test identification parade of the accused was held at the sub-jail in nearby Aluva. Alam, who was arrested soon after the crime on Friday, was brought to the sub-jail on Sunday.
At least three witnesses reportedly attended the identification parade. The police, however, didn't divulge more details.
Thajudeen, a local labourer who had seen Alam going inside the market along with the girl before committing the crime, told reporters outside that he would give his statement against the accused anywhere to ensure maximum punishment.
He also confirmed that he identified the accused during the parade. "He should get maximum punishment... I saw him that day... I will say this anywhere," he said.
Meanwhile, police said they would proceed to get the custody of the accused.
"We have already filed the custody application of the accused. After the test identification parade procedure, we will step into that. The rest of the things will be decided by the court," a senior police officer said.
On July 28, the five-year-old girl was abducted, raped and killed allegedly by Alam who lived in the same building as the victim.
The child's family too hails from the same state. Her body was found dumped in a sack in a marshy area behind a local market in the nearby Aluva area here the following day.
The accused was arrested on Friday itself, but could not be interrogated as he was in an inebriated state, police had said.
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NEET student hangs self in Rajasthan's Sikar
Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.
According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.
He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.
Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.
He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.
His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.
The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.
The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.
Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.
Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.
