UP: Woman, daughters kill selves after police raid over elopement
MEERUT: Baghpat police on Wednesday registered a case against a sub-inspector and five others after a woman and her two daughters consumed poison during a police raid at their house in Bachaud village on Tuesday evening fearing arrest.
While the elder daughter, aged 19, died on Wednesday, the mother and the younger daughter, 17, died in a hospital in Meerut on Thursday.
The woman belongs to the Lohar community, a backward caste, and her son had eloped with a Dalit woman a fortnight ago; the police raid was aimed at finding the couple after a complaint was registered by the Dalit woman’s father.
Police had raided the premises after receiving a tip off that the eloped couple had returned and was staying at the boy’s house.
The deaths sent a shock wave through the village. Angry villagers refused to perform the last rites of the older girl on Wednesday, demanding that police and the Dalit woman’s brothers, who were present during the raid, be booked for pushing the woman and her daughters to consume poison. District magistrate (DM) of Baghpat Rajkamal Yadav and SP Neeraj Kumar Jadaun rushed to the village on Wednesday and tried to pacify the villagers.
The angry villagers only agreed to perform the last rites after a case was registered against six people, including sub-inspector Naresh Pal of Chaprauli police station and two brothers of the eloped woman.
On Thursday, the woman and her 17-year-old second daughter also died during treatment. The villagers once again refused to perform last rites, demanding the arrest of the accused and ex-gratia of ₹50 lakh to the kin of the victims’ family.
The DM and SP again managed to pacify the villagers and the last rites of the woman and her daughter were performed.
Meanwhile, a heavy police force has been deployed in the village to maintain peace.
The deceased woman’s son eloped with the Dalit woman a fortnight ago and police along with the Dalit woman’s brothers and family members were mounting pressure on the boy’s family to find out the couple’s whereabouts. “No one has been arrested yet,” circle officer of Baraut area Yuvraj Singh said.
A SUB-INSPECTOR IS AMONG SIX PEOPLE WHO HAVE BEEN BOOKED