Patna: Muzaffarpur district authorities on Monday carried out excavations on the campus of Balika Grih (a short stay home for girls) to find the body of a resident allegedly murdered and buried after she refused to yield to molestation attempts.

No human remains were found in the five-hour-long operation. The dig was initiated on court orders after a few survivors rescued from the shelter home, sponsored by the state government, alleged the murder and burial of a fellow inmate.

Police though are not treating it as a setback, and have sent samples of soil taken out during the dig for forensic tests.

Three girls, who had levelled allegations of murder, were brought to the premises to identify the spot of burial.

"This is no setback. Our work is to investigate the case from all angles. We conducted the dig on the orders of the court following the statement by an 11-year-old girl about the murder and burial of another inmate. She had told that one Kiran, who worked at the short stay home and is currently in jail, had told her about it," Muzaffarpur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Harpreet Kaur told The Telegraph.

The dig was conducted at a couple of places within the premises of Balika Grih under the supervision of an executive magistrate.

Harpreet added that mud samples have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) to ascertain whether any human body was buried there at any point of time.

Several registers and a few clothes were also seized from the premises to investigate the role of visitors to the place. A sniffer dog squad was pressed into service to trace out any human remains.

The allegations of rape of Balika Grih inmates allegedly by its proprietors, office-bearers and visitors came to light in the last week of May this year leading to an FIR, followed by the arrest of Brajesh Thakur, the proprietor, and nine others, including a couple of government officials.

"We have arrested 10 persons so far, while one is still absconding. Efforts are on to nab him. Our investigations are still going on. We cannot reveal much at the moment as it may hamper our probe," Harpreet added.

The Muzaffarpur SSP also said that she has written to the medical authorities concerned to send the pending medical reports of eight girls.

"There were a total 42 girls at Balika Grih. Medical examination of all the girls, except two, were conducted. The two were excluded due to medical reasons. The reports received so far have revealed the possibility of rape of 29 girls. We are yet to receive the reports of eight girls and have written about it to the authorities concerned," Harpreet added. The test was conducted by a medical board of Patna Medical College and Hospital.

Family members of Balika Grih proprietor Thakur, one of the prime accused, protested and hampered the dig for some time. They were asserting that the place could not be dug just on the basis of allegations.

However, SSP Harpreet warned them not to obstruct work being done on the orders of the court after which the protests stopped. Thakur's family members stay in a building on the same campus in which Balika Grih and a printing press are located in a separate building.

RJD leader Tejashwi Prasad Yadav alleged that the Nitish Kumar government was shielding those involved in the heinous crime.