New Delhi: Two Dalit teenage sisters were found hanging from a tree in a sugarcane field in Uttar Pradesh’s Lakhimpur Kheri on Wednesday (September 14, 2022), police said. Police said their bodies were sent for post-mortem to ascertain the exact cause of death. 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, news agency PTI reported.
A heavy police force has now been deployed in the village to ensure law and order.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attacked the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government over “increasing” crimes against women in the state and compared the twin deaths with the Hathras gang-rape and murder.
“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’,” Akhilesh Yadav said.
After kidnapping 2 Dalit sisters in Nighasan police station area, their murder and after that the father’s allegation on the police is very serious that their post-mortem was done without Panchnama and consent.
After farmers in Lakhimpur, the killing of Dalits is now a heinous repetition of the ‘Hathras ki Beti’ massacre. pic.twitter.com/gFmea4bAUc— Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) September 14, 2022
Earlier in 2020, a 19-year-old Dalit woman was raped allegedly by four upper-caste men in Hathras. She later died on September 29 at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital. The victim was cremated in the dead of the night near her home on September 30 and her family had alleged that they were forced by the local police to hurriedly conduct her last rites. Local police officers, however, said the cremation was carried out as per the wishes of the family.
“The killings of the two sisters in Lakhimpur is heartbreaking. The 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 every day. After all, why are heinous crimes against women increasing in Uttar Pradesh? When will the government wake up?,” Priyanka said.
When will the government wake up? — Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) September 14, 2022
(With agency inputs)