A teenage girl was found dead at Chadepani in Dogadakedar Rural Municipality-7, Baitadi, on Thursday. The 17-year-old had gone to school on Wednesday and never returned home.

According to the District Police Office in Baitadi, her body was discovered in Lovelake forest on Thursday. The body has been sent to the District Hospital for post mortem.

“Her death seems to have occurred under mysterious circumstances. But we can’t confirm the cause of her death until we receive the post mortem report,” said Deputy Superintendent of Police Narayan Prasad Adhikari.

A sniffer dog along with a special team from Kathmandu have been deployed to investigate the incident. “A team led by SSP Janak Raj Pandey of Sudurpaschim Police has also been mobilised to investigate the incident,” said Adhikari.

The deceased was a 12th grader at Sanatan Dharma Secondary School in Khochlek, Ward No. 3 of the rural municipality.

Baladev Nath, principal of Sanatan Secondary School, said the victim had attended school on Wednesday and had left for home at around 2pm after classes.

“The distance between her house in Chadepani and the school is around one hour,” he said.

Shankar Bhatta, the victim’s uncle, said that the family assumed that she had gone to a relative’s house after school on Wednesday when she did not come home on time.

“There were scars on her body and her clothes were torn,” said Adhikari. “Her undergarment had bloodstains. Police investigators have also recovered her mobile set and bag from the incident site.”

The family of the deceased, local residents and students from Sanatan school staged demonstrations in Dogadakedar on Friday, demanding swift justice for the deceased and strong action against the perpetrators. They also obstructed Mahakali Highway for four hours on Friday.

“We will continue to protest until the police arrest the culprits and take action against them,” said Bhuwan Karki, a local student.

The deceased lived with her mother. Her brother had gone to India a few days ago in search of a job whereas her father had died two months ago, police said.