Dalit Sisters Found Hanging In UP's Lakhimpur Kheri, Six Arrested So Far

The bodies of two minor sisters, aged 17 and 15, from a Dalit family in Lakhimpur Kheri were found hanging from a tree on September 14. Family members of the girl reportedly saw the two minors being abducted by two men on a bike hours before finding the bodies. However, initial police reports pointed to suicide prima facie, and they commented that a conclusive cause could only be drawn after the autopsy.

Several villagers and politicians have expressed their outrage over the incident and have staged protests for speedy justice. The latest updates of the case suggest that six accused have been charged with the death of the two minors.

Blockades And Promises Of Charging The Guilty

The bodies were found hanging from a tree in the Nighasan area of Lakhimpur Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh. Locals spotted the bodies in the field, which is about half a kilometre away from the girls' house. Alerting the villagers about the bodies, news spread like a forest fire, and angry villagers blocked roads in protest.

The blockade brought the attention of senior police officials, who intervened and assured that necessary action would be taken against those found guilty. Superintendent of Police (SP) of Lakhimpur Kheri, Sanjiv Suman, said that a clearer picture could only be produced after the autopsy report was received. A First Investigation Reporter (FIR) was not initially registered, as the SP said that the family had not lodged a complaint.

Last evening after the terrifying incident involving Dalit minors found hanging from tree, @UPPolice had assured justice to family of #LakhimpurKheri sisters

IG (Lucknow Range) Lakshmi Singh had rushed to the spot.@AlokReporter & @dharmendra_lmp reportpic.twitter.com/pGerI6Z0yS

— Rohan Dua (@rohanduaT02) September 15, 2022

The initial reports by Indian Express quoted Circle Officer Subodh Kumar Jaiswal pointing to the case as a suicide prima facie. He added that the clothes of the victims were intact, and they had no visible injury marks apart from the marks on their necks due to the hanging.

A statement from the victim sisters' mother revealed that two youths abducted the two minors on a motorcycle three hours prior to having found the bodies. The mother tried running behind the motorcycle but was unable to catch them.

A Repeated Pattern Of Crimes Against Women

Recent updates, as reported by multiple media houses, indicate that the six accused detained from the neighbouring village have been taken into custody for rape and murder of the minor sisters.

Lakhimpur Kheri Horror: Junaid, Arif, Hafiz among 5 Muslim men arrested for rape, hanging of two dalit sisters

Minors were dragged,hanged@Uppolice make big disclosures

Was it a communal crime or crime of passion

Fills us with disgust but @zoo_bear will maintain stoic silence pic.twitter.com/rHEMouJD2F

— Rohan Dua (@rohanduaT02) September 15, 2022

Reacting to the incident, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav tweeted, saying, "After farmers in Lakhimpur, this is a heinous repetition of the 'Hathras ki Beti' killing." He brought up the father's allegations against the police that their post-mortem was done without the villager's consent or 'panchnama'.

The incident also happens to be a grim reminder of many such repeated crimes against women in remote rural regions. Earlier in 2020, three minor girls were raped and murdered in Lakhimpur Kheri, and in 2011 the body of a teenage girl was found hanging from a tree in a similar manner to the recent incident. The latter was also reported at the Nighasan police station and paved the way for investigations by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Also Read: Uttar Pradesh: 13-Year-Old Dalit Girl Raped, Strangled To Death, Two Arrested