Both accused — Deepak Kumar , 32, and his wife Pooja , 29, were arrested in UP’s Etah on Sunday evening. Agra : A three-year-old girl whose mother died giving birth to her was allegedly strangled to death and stuffed in a plastic sack inside a trunk by her maternal uncle and aunt amid a dispute over jewellery preserved for the child.
Pandey added: “The incident came to light when Mahesh Chandra of Etah’s Nagla Bhupal area reported about his missing granddaughter on Oct 24. An FIR under BNS section 137 (2) (kidnapping) was registered. Soni married Sanjay from Hathras district in 2020, according to police. She died in 2023. Around 15 days later, her maternal grandparents took the infant home in Nagla Bhupal for care and support. Her father remarried in Dec 2024.
Police said questioning of family members along with CCTV footage led them to the couple. The child’s body was found in a trunk near a large tree, two days later.
“Soni, mother of Radhika, 3, left behind gold jewellery worth around Rs 15 lakh along with silver ornaments for her daughter’s education and marriage. Her grandparents were also planning to buy a plot in her name in Etah around Diwali. This led to a dispute within the family,” ASP (Etah) Shwetabh Pandey said on Monday.