A Class X schoolgirl was allegedly stabbed to death by her neighbour at a village near Alipurduar town and the body of a Class VI schoolboy was recovered from the banks of river Torsa, also near the town, on Wednesday.

The deaths of these two students has send shockwaves across Alipurduar district.

The 14-year-old girl was preparing to leave for school when her neighbour Swapan Biswas, 22, allegedly entered her thatched house and stabbed her.
“Around 9.30 am, the girl, who had eaten her breakfast and changed into her school uniform, was preparing to leave for school when Swapan entered her house and struck her neck with a dagger from behind,” alleged a villager.

The girl’s parents were out working in the fields but her younger sister was outside the house. “The younger sister saw the body in a pool of blood and screamed,” said a villager. “But the girl had died on the spot.”

Angry villagers attacked Swapan’s house. Police arrested Swapan and detained all his family members.

Preliminary investigations suggest Swapan’s overtures had been rejected by the girl who was a good student. Her parents are day labourers who work on farmland.
Her school’s headmaster Prabir Roy said he was speechless.

“The girl was good in studies, polite and sincere. During Covid-19 pandemic she did not miss any online class.”

Bholanath Pandey, Alipurduar SP, said the accused would be produced to court on Thursday. “We will seek a 15-day police remand for further investigations,” said Pandey.
In a separate incident, police recovered the body of a 12-year-boy, a Class VI student, near river Torsa on Wednesday morning. He had gone to attend a village fair on Tuesday evening.

“When he did not return home at night, worried parents had lodged a missing diary. Early morning, his body was recovered from behind a bush along Torsa river,” said a police source, adding that a probe was on.