JOIN USHathras gang rape victim's family complains of shoddy treatment by police, administration
The family members of a teen who was allegedly gang raped before being brutally murdered in Hathras district, told the Allahabad high court on Monday that the local police and the district administration 'harassed' them and did not even allow them to perform the list rites of their daughter.
They also said that the district administration tried to exert undue pressure on them while the police did not even file FIR, when they approached the cops immediately after the incident last month.
The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court, which has taken suo motu cognisance of the incident, posted the matter for further hearing on November 2nd.
During around three hour long hearing, as many as five members of the victim's family narrated their side of the story before the court. The district magistrate and the police chief of Hathras also put forth their contention in the matter.
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The DM of Hathras Praveen Kumar told the court that the decision to cremate the victim at midnight was taken keeping in view the law and order situation that prevailed at the time in the village.
The lawyer for the victim's family sought transfer of the hearing outside the state and protection to the family.
Earlier, five members of the victim's family, including her parents, arrived at the court amid tight security arrangements from Hathras. They were escorted by senior police and civil officials.
The Dalit teen had been brutally assaulted by four youths and died in the hospital. The family members alleged that she was gang raped. The police allegedly held her family and hostage and cremated the body at midnight. All the four accused have been arrested
The police claimed that the postmortem report and forensic examination of the Hathras victim did not confirm 'rape or gang rape' and that she had died owing to injury on her neck.
The incident triggered a massive outrage with the opposition leaders targeting Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for failing to ensure safety of the womenfolk in the state.