Protesters Block Pune Highway Over Toddler's Rape-Murder

Hundreds of protesters blocked the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway near Pune's Navale Bridge on Saturday evening, halting traffic for nearly four hours in outrage over the sexual assault and murder of a three-and-a-half-year-old girl in Bhor taluka's Nasrapur village.

The incident occurred on Friday when a 65-year-old laborer, identified as Bhimrao Kamble and with a prior criminal record including offenses under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, allegedly lured the child with the promise of food. He took her to a cattle shed, where police say he sexually assaulted her and then killed her by striking her with a stone. Investigators used CCTV footage from a nearby residence to track and arrest Kamble shortly after. He has been charged under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the POCSO Act and remanded to police custody until May 7. A special investigation team is collecting forensic evidence, witness statements and additional recordings to build the case.

The victim's family and local residents escalated their grief into action by placing the child's body on the highway during the protest, demanding the death penalty and a fast-track trial. Videos...