Bhubaneswar, July 12: Police today arrested a 17-year-old boy and his cousin on charges of raping and killing a minor girl in Keonjhar.

The accused, who had a relationship with the 16-year-old victim, had taken her to Keonjhar with the promise to marry her. He allegedly killed her and disposed of the body in a forest there. The police said the body was found on July 8 and it had severe head injuries.

The girl's parents had lodged a complaint with the police on July 6 accusing the boy of kidnapping her. The police said they had lodged a case of kidnapping but later came to know about the murder from their Keonjhar counterparts. The police said the girl's head was smashed with a rock before the body was disposed of in the forest.

Investigations revealed that the two had been in a relationship for the past few years. The boy had asked the victim to come down to Jagamara to witness the chariot festival on July 6. "Later, the accused and his cousin managed to convince her to go with them to Keonjhar promising her that they would get married in a temple. The three stayed at a hotel there for two days," said a police officer.

The police said the accused, and his cousin, identified as Umakanta Das, 42, raped her at the hotel in Keonjhar. Then they took the victim to a forest and crushed her head with a rock. "After killing her, they returned to Bhubaneswar on July 8 and pleaded ignorance regarding the girl's whereabouts. We suspected foul play after the statements of the accused did not add up," said the officer.

Deputy commissioner of police Satyabrata Bhoi said the accused had hatched the murder plot after the girl put pressure on the boy to marry her.