The National Human Rights Commission has said its serious attention has been drawn to the suspicious death of a 13-year-old girl after an alleged rape in Devdaha Municipality-11 of Rupandehi district.

Birendra Bhar, 25, on May 22, allegedly raped the victim Angira Pasi. Local residents, next day, caught Bhar and presented him before ward chairperson Amar Bahadur Chaudhary, who instead of taking him to the police, asked Bhar to take Pasi along as wife.

Two days later, on May 24, the victim’s body was found hanging near the Rohini stream in the municipality. Bhar’s family is reported to have rejected Pasi saying that she did not belong to their caste.

In a statement on Friday, the commission said its Butwal office has started a probe into the incident. “The commission draws the attention of the Nepal government for an immediate and fair investigation into the incident of rape, murder and caste-based discrimination and bring the culprits to book,” reads the statement.

According to Insec Nepal, a human rights organisation that monitors incidents of human rights violations across the country, police have arrested Bhar, his mother Akali and aunt Sitali in connection with the incident.

Police had refused to register a complaint from the victims on May 25. However, the Area Police Office, Butwal, received the complaint the next day after pressure from the civil society.