Was Badaun an honour killing? In new twist, DGP says one girl not raped

LUCKNOW: In a new twist to Badaun gang-rape and murder case, Uttar Pradesh DGP A L Banerjee today said rape of one of the two girls, who were found hanging from a tree, was not confirmed by forensic experts and that property could be a motive for the gruesome crime. “Of the two victims, one was a lone child. Her father has three brothers who have limited resources. In case she is not alive, then it can benefit others. It (property) can be one of the motives. I am not saying that this is the motive,” Banerjee told reporters here. Several important facts had come to light after a team of forensic experts visited the crime scene, he said. Rape of one of the victims was not confirmed by the experts, the DGP said. A report in The Times of India quoted the DGP as saying it might be a case of honour killing. He also said both girls were hanged after they were killed, contradicting the Badaun SSP’s comment last week that the girls had been alive when they were hanged. [caption id=“attachment_1558709” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  PTI[/caption] Referring to recovery of four beer bottles and two glasses from the scene, the DGP said, “It may be that the crime is of any other type. Those, who are being talked about may not be involved. They might be released, but it depends on the investigations. We don’t think that one of the victims was raped.” This indicates that some of the arrested accused could be released. According to the TOI report, when asked if the five arrested men - two of whom are UP police constables - were innocent, Banerjee said, “Investigations are under way and we will be in a position to confirm if they are involved or not after reports of their DNA profiling are received from the Hyderabad lab.” “Two policemen have been dismissed. If there has been any shortcoming, it will be rectified,” he said. Admitting laxity on part of the local police, Banerjee said a lot of evidence could have been collected immediately. But the local police made no extra effort to find them, he said adding the forensic team, which was sent to the scene, collected important evidence. The post mortem report stated the victims died due to hanging, but examination by experts revealed they were hanged after they were killed, the DGP said. With inputs from PTI.