Hyderabad: Police solved the murder of a seven-year-old girl in Madannapet with the arrest of her maternal uncle and aunt on Saturday. The accused had allegedly tied her limbs, gagged her with duct tape and pushed her into an overhead water tank at her grandmother’s house at Chawni Nade Ali Baig area in Madannapet on Tuesday.The child’s body was recovered from the water tank on Wednesday, a day after she was reported missing by her mother. Following a detailed investigation, police identified the culprits as Sami Ali, 36, who runs a water plant business in Yakutpura, and his wife Yasmeen Begum, 28.Additional DCP (south east zone) K Sreekanth said Ali and Yasmeen had lost their three-and-a-half-year-old daughter in Nov 2024 due to ill health, but they believed she died due to black magic by the victim’s mother, Shabana Begum.“They bore a grudge against Shabana and disliked her frequent visits to their parental home with the victim. They also resented the girl for often visiting their house and making videos on her phone,” the DCP said.The investigation revealed a financial dispute as well.Ali had persuaded his siblings to let him take over their ancestral home by offering to pay each their share. He paid Shabana Rs 1.3 lakh but still owed her around Rs 70,000.“The accused couple hated Shabana and decided to kill her seven-year-old daughter,” said Saidabad ACP S Venkat Reddy.“On Tuesday night, when Shabana went out leaving the victim and her brother with cousins, the couple lured the girl to the terrace under the pretext of a game. They tied her hands with a bedsheet, taped her mouth, made her sit on the water tank, and then pushed her inside. They covered the opening with a lid and placed a stone on it,” he said.After the murder, the couple reportedly joined the family in searching for the child and even cried along with relatives when the body was discovered.Police verified CCTV footage near the house and found that the girl had not left the premises. Six special police teams questioned family members after which the accused confessed. The bedsheet and duct tape used in the crime were seized from the house.The accused will be produced in court for judicial remand.
