SURKHET: Family members and relatives of 16-year-old Inisa BK staged protests in Birendranagar on Wednesday demanding a fair and impartial investigation into her death.

Demonstrators marched through the city chanting slogans against rape and violence against children and calling for justice for the victim.

BK, a resident of Gurbhakot Municipality-6 in Surkhet and a Grade 11 student who had been living in Birendranagar-1, was found unconscious on March 7 in the Janajagaran Community Forest near Sahid Park in Birendranagar-4. She was taken to the Provincial Hospital in Kalagaun, where doctors declared her dead.

Her family claims she was raped before being killed. According to relatives, BK had left home that morning, saying she was going to attend practical classes.

Police from the District Police Office in Surkhet have taken five people into custody, including Anmol Gauli of Birendranagar-9, who was reportedly with her at the time. Three other suspects were detained on March 8 during further investigation, while a 16-year-old boy was arrested earlier on the afternoon of March 7.

Further investigation into the incident is ongoing, said police.