LUCKNOW, March 20 -- A 17-year-old girl was brutally murdered and her semi-nude body dumped in Gomti river in Lucknow's Madiaon area, triggering outrage and suspicion of sexual assault. The victim's uncle, who had taken her out on the pretext of buying medicine, has been arrested and being interrogated. The teenager, who had lost her parents, lived with her aunt and brother, said police. They said the girl's aunt had married the accused around one-and-a-half years ago. On Wednesday night, the man, a painter by profession, returned home and claimed he had fallen from a ladder at work. He told his wife he was going to get medicines and took the girl along with him. Around 45 minutes later, the accused called the victim's brother, claiming that unidentified men in a car intercepted them near the 60-feet road at Mama Colony turn, abused him, and abducted the girl. He said he managed to escape and was hiding near a pontoon bridge over the Gomti. The family rushed to the spot and alerted the police. Madiaon police, led by inspector Shivanand Mishra, reached the spot and examined CCTV footage along the route. The footage did not support the abduction claim. "No car matching the description was seen, while the accused was captured moving with the girl in multiple clips. Police also found him in an intoxicated state, further deepening suspicion," said Mishra. After the abduction theory was ruled out, police began a search along the riverbank. During the search, the victim's slippers and clothes were recovered from the bushes near the Gomti, indicating that the crime may have occurred there. Suspecting the body had been dumped into the river, an SDRF team was called in. Following an overnight operation, the girl's body was recovered from the Gomti on Thursday morning, around 9 am, near the pontoon bridge. The lower part of her body was found without clothing, leading police to suspect rape. Mishra said swabs have been sent to FSL for further examination. "Autopsy revealed drowning as the cause of her death," he added. Police said after rape the man allegedly pushed her into the river as she started raising an alarm. Additional DCP (north zone) Rishabh Runwal said the probe was underway. htc...