Jamshedpur, May 24 : The body of a missing 15-year-old Class 9 student was hanging from a tree in a secluded area in Jharkhand's East Singhbhum district, triggering tension in the area, officials said on Sunday.

The deceased, identified as Mala Singh, had been missing since the evening of May 21. Her body was discovered on Saturday in a secluded area near a field, around two kilometres from her home in Nutandih village under the Bodam police station limits, triggering panic and outrage among villagers.

The situation turned tense on Sunday after the body was brought back to the village following post-mortem examination, with family members and local residents alleging murder and demanding a fair, high-level investigation along with the immediate arrest of those responsible.

Mala Singh was a Class 9 student at Lailam School in Bodam. According to her family, she had left home on the evening of May 21 after informing them that she was going to bathe in the village pond. When she did not return till late evening, family members and villagers began searching for her in nearby areas.

Despite extensive efforts over the next two days, no trace of her was found. On Saturday, some villagers spotted her body hanging from a tree in an isolated spot outside the village and alerted the police.

A team from the Bodam police station reached the spot, brought the body down, and took it into custody. After completing legal formalities, the body was sent to MGM Medical College for post-mortem and was handed over to the family on Sunday.

The incident has left the family devastated, while grief and anger have spread across the village.

Family members have rejected the possibility of suicide and termed the incident a case of murder. They said Mala was cheerful and had not shown any signs of distress or suicidal behaviour.

They also questioned how she could have reached a deserted location nearly two kilometres away when she had left home only to visit the village pond.

The family further claimed there were scratch marks on her body, raising suspicion of a possible struggle before her death.

Villagers warned of protests if a fair probe is not conducted and those responsible are not identified.

The Bodam police station in charge said an unnatural death case has been registered and an investigation is underway from all possible angles. He added that while the case may initially appear to be suicide, the exact cause of death would be established only after the post-mortem report is received.

/IANS