A man allegedly threw his two-year-old daughter into a canal and later claimed that he did it because she and her brother would fight with each other, police said on Sunday.

The accused, Suleman, a resident of Madhiyai village under Sardhana police station area here, has been detained as the search for the missing girl continues, the police said.

They said the villagers told them that two more daughters of Suleman had disappeared under suspicious circumstances in the past. Superintendent of Police (Rural) Kamlesh Bahadur said that the Sardhana police station received an information on Friday that the two-year-old daughter of Suleman was missing since 8 am. On receiving the information, Station House Officer (SHO) of Sardhana police station Pratap Singh reached Suleman's house but he was not at home.

The police looked for the girl in the nearby area but when they could not find her, they scanned the CCTV cameras installed in the village.

In the CCTV camera, the girl was seen leaving the village with her father, Suleman, the police said, adding that they searched that area as well but couldn't find the two-year-old.

After the villagers informed the police about Suleman's two other missing daughters, SP (Rural) Bahadur said they detained and questioned the father.

During interrogation, Suleman told the police that he had thrown his daughter in the Ganga Canal near Madhiyai village, he said.

On being asked why he took that step, Suleman said his daughter and son used to fight with each other, so he took the girl to the canal and threw her there, SP (Rural) Bahadur said.

He said Suleman was still being interrogated and efforts were on to trace the missing girl.

A case has been registered against Suleman on charges of murder and hiding evidence, a police official said.

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