UP Dalit sisters' rape-murder: Six arrested; bodies of victims handed over to family after autopsy, say police

New Delhi: Uttar Pradesh Police on Thursday said that they have arrested six accused for the rape and murder of two Dalit sisters who were found hanging from a tree in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur, adding that the bodies of the two girls have been handed over to the family after the post-mortem. “We received an information that bodies of two sisters were found hanging from a  tree on 14 September… All six accused were arrested within 24 hours. Post-mortem has been conducted and bodies handed over to the family,” said UP ADG (law and order) Prashant Kumar at a press conference.

#WATCH | Lakhimpur Kheri incident: We received info that bodies of 2 sisters were found hanging on Sept 14... All accused arrested within 24 hrs; one of the accused got injured during police proceedings. Post mortem done, bodies handed over to family: UP ADG (L&O) Prashant Kumar https://t.co/QoNlxHFwYq pic.twitter.com/WYimNYqo0H

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) September 15, 2022

Police said that one of the accused was nabbed in an encounter after he was shot in his leg. “The accused have been identified as Chotu, Junaid, Sohail, Hafizul, Karimuddin and Arif. Junaid was nabbed in an encounter after he was shot in his leg,” said SP Lakhimpur Kheri Sanjeev Suman briefing the press earlier in the day. Police said the accused were friends with the deceased girls. “The girls were lured to farms and raped by Sohail and Junaid yesterday. After the girls forced the accused to marry them, Sohail, Hafizul and Junaid strangulated them to death. They then called Karimuddin and Arif and hanged the girls to eliminate proof,” said the SP.

UP | Total 6 accused involved in crime in different ways, arrested. Accused identified as Chotu, Junaid, Sohail, Hafizul, Karimuddin & Arif. Accused Junaid has been nabbed in an encounter that ensued where he was shot in his leg: SP Lakhimpur Kheri Sanjeev Suman https://t.co/QoNlxHFwYq

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) September 15, 2022

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All the accused other than Chotu hail from Lalpur village in Lakhimpur Kheri. Chotu, who was a neighbour of the girls, had introduced the them to the boys, said police. “This is a preliminary probe… Case is against women and against a weaker section of society. We worked with speed and sensitivity. Accused have been booked under Sections 302, 376 of the IPC and POCSO Act,” added the SP. On Wednesday, the two Dalit teenage sisters were found hanging from a tree in a sugarcane field about a kilometre away from their house in Nighasan police station limits. The mother of the two girls alleged that they were murdered and accused three youths from the neighbouring village in Nighasan police station limits of abducting and killing them. Meanwhile, villagers held a demonstration at Nighasan Cross to protest the killings. Superintendent of Police Sanjiv Suman and Assistant Superintendent of Police Arun Kumar Singh talked to the irate villagers in a bid to console them, while a heavy police forced was deployed in the village to ensure law and order. As soon as the news broke, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attacked the Uttar Pradesh government over “increasing” crimes against women in the state and compared the twin deaths with the Hathras gang-rape and murder. Comparing Wednesday’s case to the Hathras incident, SP president Akhilesh Yadav said in a tweet, “Murder of two Dalit sisters after kidnapping them in Nighasan police station area. Their father’s allegation on the police is very serious that they carried out ‘panchnama’ and post-mortem without the family’s consent. After farmers in Lakhimpur, the killing of Dalits is now a repetition of the murder of ‘Hathras’ daughter’.” Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also took to Twitter to condemn the incident. “The killings of the two sisters in Lakhimpur is heartbreaking. Family says the girls were abducted in broad daylight. Law and order in the state doesn’t improve by giving false advertisements in newspapers and TV everyday. After all, why are heinous crimes against women increasing in Uttar Pradesh? When will the government wake up?” UP Deputy Chief Minister KP Maurya said that the rule of law has prevailed in UP and slammed the Opposition for politicising the issue. “Lakhimpur incident is sad and unfortunate. Harshest action will be taken against all the criminals. I’d expect Opposition, whether Akhilesh Yadav, Priyanka Gandhi or Mayawati that instead of politicising, they console the family. The rule of the law has prevailed in UP,” said Maurya. A collection of suicide prevention helpline numbers are available here. Please reach out if you or anyone you know is in need of support. The All-India helpline number is: 022-27546669 With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News , Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.