Sitapur (Uttar Pradesh) Feb 11 (IANS): A three-year-old girl has been raped and murdered in Uttar Pradesh's Sitapur district. The incident has led to an outrage with people blocking the Sitapur-Delhi highway for several hours on Tuesday.

Senior police officials reached the spot and assured the people of strict action against the accused who has been arrested. Following which the blockade was lifted.

According to reports, the victim was playing outside her house under Mohali police circle, late on Monday evening, when she was lured away by a youth, Raju, who offered her biscuits.

Raju took the child to his house where he raped her and then strangulated her to death. He put her body into a sack and then covered it with a bucket.

The victim's parents were not at home when the incident took place.

When the parents returned and found their daughter missing, they started searching for her. The victim's uncle saw Raju and asked him if he had seen the child.

Raju became nervous and rushed into his house and the uncle followed him in. The child's slippers were lying in the courtyard.

The police was called in and after an intensive search, the body was found in a sack, hidden under a bucket.

Raju was arrested and has been booked under the relevant sections of IPC and the POCSO Act.