Family alleges police inaction; Samajwadi MP breaks down describing the inhuman treatment
Team Clarion
NEW DELHI — The naked and mutilated body of a 22-year-old Dalit woman was found in a desolate canal near her village in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya, with her family alleging murder, police said on Saturday.
The victim’s family members claimed that the eyes of the girl, who had gone missing since Thursday were gouged out. Further, they said, her body had broken bones, and her limbs were tightly bound with a rope, media reports reaching here said.
The woman has been untraceable since Thursday when she left home around 10 p.m. to attend a religious event. When she did not return, her family searched the village and filed a missing person report at the Ayodhya police station on Friday. However, they alleged that the police did not actively search for her.
On Saturday morning, her brother-in-law discovered her unclothed body in the canal. According to the family and villagers who retrieved her, she had deep wounds, severe injuries to her skull, and a fractured leg.
Circle Officer Ashutosh Tiwari confirmed that a missing complaint had been filed. “Now that the body has been recovered, we are awaiting the autopsy report. Further action will be taken accordingly,” reports quoted him as saying.
Authorities suspect that the woman was gang-raped before being murdered. The gruesome nature of the crime has sparked outrage, with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav condemning the incident.
“This is a result of administrative negligence,” Yadav stated. “Strict action should be taken against the culprits and the negligent police officers. The victim’s family must be given ₹1 crore as compensation.”
Ayodhya SP MP Awadhesh Prasad, who visited the family on Saturday to offer support, broke down during a press conference in Ayodhya on Sunday. He could not control his tears while speaking about a rape and murder case. Prasad started crying bitterly, recalling his meeting with the victim’s family members.
Prasad said, if the victim does not get justice, he would resign from the Lok Sabha. People were stunned to see the MP crying like this in a crowded press conference. Former minister Tej Narayan Pandey Pawan and SP district president Parasnath Yadav consoled him and repeatedly tried to calm him down.
Meanwhile, the police have assured that an investigation is underway to bring the perpetrators to justice.
The woman’s family has accused police of inaction, alleging that officers did not actively search for her despite the missing report.
A large crowd gathered at the scene after the body was found, demanding swift justice.