The post-mortem report of the 17-year-old girl whose body was found in a forest in Baitadi on Thursday has been submitted to the police.

Police have concluded, based on the report, that someone had raped her before she was murdered.

Deputy Superintendent Narayan Prasad Adhikari, who is the chief at the District Police Office, said the report also showed that the girl sustained wounds on her head, legs, mouth, hands and private parts.

According to Adhikari, the report also says there are drag marks on her body. He said he received the report on Monday evening.

Dr Basantaraj Joshi, chief at the District Hospital, refused to make any comments on the case or the post-mortem report, citing that the case is still under investigation.

“The hospital submitted the postmortem report to the District Police Office on Monday,” he said.

The deceased was a 12th grader at Sanatan Dharma Secondary School in Khochlek, Ward No. 3 of Dogadakedar Rural Municipality. She did not return home after school on Wednesday, said her family members.

Her body was discovered in a bush in a semi-naked condition on Thursday and was taken to the District Hospital for postmortem on Friday.

No arrests have been made by the police so far. Personnel from the District Police Office, Provincial Police Office and Central Bureau of Investigation have been investigating the case. On Sunday, Deputy Inspector General of Police Uttam Kumar Subedi, also the chief at the Provincial Police Office in Sudurpaschim, reached Dogadakedar to inquire about the incident.

The family of the victim is getting anxious since the police have not given them any answers in relation to the case. “We don’t think anyone is being apprehended. It’s already been five days since the crime but we have received no news. We have started to lose hope for justice,” said Shankar Bhatta, the victim’s uncle.

DSP Adhikari said they are making efforts to obtain the investigation result and are checking out suspects and speaking to people close to the deceased.

“There are many individuals under interrogation currently,” said Adhikari. “We are doing a thorough investigation which is why it is taking some time to come to conclusions.”

Meanwhile, the victim’s family has refused to receive the body kept in the Baitadi District Hospital. They said that they would not receive the body unless the authorities arrested the perpetrators involved in the crime. Students, teachers, civil society leaders and the general public have been protesting at several places in the district since the incident, demanding justice for the teenager and immediate arrest of the culprits. They have also been demanding death penalty to rapists.

The National Human Rights Commission has expressed serious concern over the death of the teenager. On Sunday, the Provincial Office of the commission in Dhangadhi launched an investigation starting from the site where the body was found. The constitutional human rights watchdog has also urged the government to conduct a fair and effective investigation into the matter and protect the witnesses during the investigation.