Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday condemned the brutal murder of a toddler in Uttar Pradesh’s Aligarh district and demanded swift action in the case.

“The horrific murder of a little girl in Aligarh, UP has shocked and disturbed me. How can any human being treat a child with such brutality? This terrible crime must not go unpunished. The UP police must act swiftly to bring the killers to justice,” the 48-year-old Congress chief tweeted.

The horrific murder of a little girl in Aligarh, UP has shocked and disturbed me. How can any human being treat a child with such brutality? This terrible crime must not go unpunished. The UP police must act swiftly to bring the killers to justice.

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) June 7, 2019

His sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, too, expressed outrage calling the murder an “unspeakable crime” while raising questions on the state of the society.

“The brutal murder in Aligarh is yet another inhuman, unspeakable crime against an innocent child. I cannot even begin to imagine the pain her parents must feel. What has become of us?” Vadra, who is also the party General Secretary, tweeted.

The brutal murder in Aligarh is yet another inhuman, unspeakable crime against an innocent child. I cannot even begin to imagine the pain her parents must feel. What has become of us?

— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) June 7, 2019

A two-and-a-half-year-old girl was brutally killed in Aligarh. Her body was found on 2 June in a dumping ground near her house, three days after she went missing.

The incident took place in Tappal town in Aligarh. The murderers had strangled the girl to death and gouged her eyes out after her parents allegedly failed to repay a loan of Rs 10,000.

According to the police, the two accused, identified as Zahid and Aslam, were neighbours of the girl who was murdered. The two have been arrested.

The Uttar Pradesh Police has constituted a Special Investigative Team (SIT) to probe the murder.

“SIT formed under Superintendent of Police rural area (SPRA). Forensic science team, Special Operation Group (SOG) and a team of experts also in the SIT to conduct investigation on a fast track basis. POCSO Act will also be there in the case,” DG (Law and Order) Anand Kumar was quoted as saying by ANI.

The mother of the toddler appealed for death penalty for the accused.

“I request Modi Government and Yogi Government to severely punish the accused. We want death penalty for him. Otherwise if he comes out after 7 years, he will be emboldened even more,” she was quoted as saying by ANI.

Following outrage over the horrific murder, and considering the gravity of the crime, the Uttar Pradesh government has decided to book the two accused under the National Security Act (NSA) and transfer the case to a fast track court. Under the NSA, a person can be imprisoned for up to a year without being charged.

According to reports, the accused have been charged under Section 302 (murder) and 363 (kidnapping) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Police officials told PTI that the post-mortem examination did not find any signs of sexual assault and that death of the victim was due to strangulation.