LUCKNOW, Dec. 20 -- What began as an ordinary afternoon of play on a rooftop turned into a terrifying ordeal for a family in Lucknow's Bastouli village when a three-year-old girl was struck by a stray bullet. Who fired it and from where is a question on which the police are working.

The incident took place on December 16 in the Ghazipur police station area, where little Lakshmi, daughter of Ramesh, was playing on the terrace of her house under a tin shed along with her elder brothers, Soubhagya, 8 and Himansh, 7. Without any warning, a loud noise pierced the air, and within moments the child collapsed, bleeding from her head and crying in agony.

Family members said they were stunned and confused, unable to comprehend how a bullet could ...