Ashiq Kumar, arrested on charges of murdering a 17-year-old-girl and stuffing her body inside a suitcase (Credit: TOI)

BENGALURU: Police in Bengaluru have arrested eight people, including a minor, in connection with the death of a 17-year-old girl whose body was found stuffed inside a suitcase near railway tracks in the city’s Chandapura area. The girl, originally from Bihar, had reportedly been brought to Karnataka on 18 May by a man who had promised to marry her. Her body was discovered near a railway bridge on 21 May. According to police, the main accused, 30-year-old Ashiq Kumar, is a resident of Kachanayakanahalli and works as a helper in a factory. Officers said he had travelled to Bihar and convinced the girl to accompany him to Bengaluru with assurances that he would divorce his wife and build a separate home for the two of them. Investigations revealed that the girl was taken to the house of one of Kumar’s relatives, Mukesh Kumar, on the night of 20 May. It was there, police say, that Ashiq Kumar attempted to initiate a physical relationship with the girl. When she refused and insisted that she would only cooperate after marriage, Kumar allegedly assaulted her with a beer bottle and then strangled her. “He sat on her stomach and strangled her after she fell down,” the investigating officer told reporters. Police said Kumar then tried to stage the scene as a suicide. He contacted Mukesh and others, who were away at the time, claiming the girl had hanged herself. He broke a window pane in an apparent attempt to make it appear as if he had forced the door open after discovering her body. However, the landlord, who lived in the same building, grew suspicious after hearing the commotion and took photographs of the people gathered at the scene. “The house owner’s photographs have proved crucial in identifying others who were present and involved in concealing the crime,” a senior police officer said. Following the murder, the group allegedly placed the girl’s body in a suitcase, hired a cab, and dumped it near the railway bridge to avoid detection. Police from the Suryanagar station began investigating the case and managed to trace the suspects to a hideout in Bihar. All eight individuals were subsequently arrested. While Ashiq Kumar has been charged with murder, the others face allegations of aiding the crime and attempting to destroy evidence. The identity of the girl was established after a photograph of the body circulated on social media. Her parents, who saw the image, approached a local police station in Bihar. Authorities there contacted Bengaluru police, which led to the arrests.(The victim’s identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme court directives on cases related to sexual assault)