A 40-year-old man who reached the city by train along with the body of a minor girl, whom he had allegedly sold to woman in Delhi for Rs 5,000, was detained on Thursday.

Raj Kishore Mirdha, a resident of Nayak Toli near Chandni Chowk in Hatia under Jagannathpur police station, returned with the body of Shraddha Kumari (15) by Swarna Jayanti Express around 6 in the morning, sparking tension in the locality.

“The girl was an orphan and used to stay with her maternal uncle and aunt in Nayak Toli. When the girl’s relatives and local residents saw Mirdha with her body, they became very agitated and wanted to beat him up. Mirdha, who pleaded innocence, said he was not responsible for the girl’s death,” a local resident told The Telegraph.

State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (SCPCR) chairperson Arti Kujur, who visited the spot soon after getting the information about the girl’s death, confirmed the development.

“When the girl went missing three years ago, local residents had suspected Mirdha’s hand because he used to lure girls to Delhi with false promises of employment. However, Mirdha had denied his involvement that time. Now when the same man returned with the body of the girl, neigbours became livid,” Kujur said.

According to Kujur, Mirdha has confessed that had taken the girl to a woman in New Delhi for employment as domestic help and got Rs 5,000 in return.

“He said the girl was suffering from blood cancer and died on her way to Ranchi from New Delhi. But he not revealing anything specific about the woman and her location,” the SCPCR chairperson added.

Kujur said Shraddha’s elder sister Bharti (17) was also missing for around three years.

“Upon enquiry, neighbours said she had also gone looking for a job somewhere in Delhi, but none could give any specific detail about her current location or employment,” she said.

On what action Kujur had taken in the matter, she said she had directed police officials to take proper legal steps.

“As the matter appears to be a case of human trafficking as well as death of a victim of child trafficking in mysterious circumstances, I have asked police officials to probe the matter,” the SCPCR chairperson said.

City SP Aman Kumar said the body had been sent to RIMS for autopsy. “An FIR will be registered in this connection,” Kumar added.

Meanwhile, an officer of Jagannathpur police station informed that Mirdha had been detained for questioning and his mobile phone had been seized.