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Meerut, Jun 1 (PTI): A DNA test will be conducted in connection with the murder of a 17-year-old kabaddi player whose skeletal remains were recovered from a drain in Meerut, officials said on Monday.

The family has since accepted the remains as those of Anushka, also known as Riya, and has performed her last rites, according to police.

Kankerkhera Station House Officer Jitendra Singh told PTI that samples have been collected for DNA examination and the parents' samples will also be sent for testing.

Anushka, a Class 12 student and kabaddi player, had been missing since April 16. Her father, Nempal, a resident of Chirauri village in Daurala, lodged a missing person complaint at the Kankerkhera Police Station on April 28.

Police claimed to have solved the case with the arrest of Shyam Dhanak (42), originally from Dehradun and currently residing in the Kankerkhera area. During questioning, the suspect allegedly confessed to killing Anushka after a dispute over money.

According to police, Dhanak worked at a fast-food outlet near Shobhapur Cut and was acquainted with Anushka, who had been living in a rented accommodation near Shobhapur Bypass for the past nine months for her studies and sports training.

Police stated that Dhanak allegedly struck Anushka with a brick during an argument over money and later stuffed her body into a sack before dumping it in a drain near Rohta Bypass Road.

Acting on his disclosure, police recovered the remains on Sunday. The body had decomposed into a skeleton after being in the drain for several weeks.

On Monday, Anushka's mother Lalita Pal initially expressed doubts over the identity of the body, claiming that her daughter had short hair and did not wear jeans, whereas the recovered remains had long hair and were found wearing blue jeans.

"However, the family has now accepted the body as Anushka's and performed the last rites," SHO Singh said.

Superintendent of Police (City) Vinayak Gopal Bhonsle said that some individuals had misled the family regarding the identification of the remains.

"Based on the recovered mobile phone and other evidence, the family has accepted that the body is Anushka's," he said. PTI COR KIS MPL MPL

(This story is published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. No editing has been done in the headline or the body by ABP Live.)