Teen girl dies after ‘gangrape’ in UP’s Basti, kin blame local BJP leader

One of the accused is 14 years old and was apprehended by the police, while the other two – 23 and 24 years old – were arrested.

An FIR was registered a day after the incident under IPC Section 302 (murder), and Sections for gang rape and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) were added to the FIR during the investigation. A senior police officer said that the cause of death in the post mortem examination was “shock antemortem injury…”

Speaking to The Indian Express Wednesday, the victim’s father said: “The police are not acting\against one of the accused because he is a BJP leader and local policemen are often seen with him. He is being given patronage by the police. He is the mandal vice-president for the BJP’s Kisan Morcha unit for our area.”

“When my daughter was returning from the market, these men picked her up and took her to a school that was empty because of summer vacations. They raped her there, and she died. After that, they left her body at a deserted spot and fled,” added the father.

He also said the post-mortem examination report has confirmed rape. “I have received a copy of the FIR. She died because she was raped it says,” he said.

In a statement, Basti Superintendent of Police Gopal Krishna Choudhary said: “The body of a girl was recovered. In connection with the incident, the first accused was arrested within four hours, while the other two have also been arrested. Within 36 hours, all three were arrested. Strict action will be taken.”

Choudhary added, “We got information that a minor girl’s body was found behind a house. A police team reached the spot. And the body was sent for post-mortem. Inspector General (Basti range) and I conducted an inspection of the crime scene. One accused was arrested and during interrogation, he said that he knew the girl for seven-eight months and that he had called the girl…she later died.”

In the complaint, the mother of the minor victim wrote: “On June 5 between 4 pm and 6 pm (my daughter) went to buy vegetables from a local market. After considerable time passed and she did not return home, we started searching for her. At 7.33 pm, one of the accused called us and said that my daughter was lying dead near a school.”

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav also tweeted a video of the protest held by locals in Basti against the incident and wrote, “In Basti, people are protesting loudly against the rapist. But to save its own people, the BJP government is pretending to be deaf. The BJP has become a resting place for rapists.”

When contacted by The Indian Express on Wednesday, Basti BJP district unit chief Mahesh Shukla said that the accused, who is being alleged to be a BJP office-bearer by the kin of the victim, was removed from the BJP Kisan Morcha in 2021. “I had called a meeting of local leaders of the Kisan Morcha today (Wednesday). I was told that he was appointed the Mandal vice-president for the BJP’s Kisan Morcha. But months later, he was removed as he was found to be involved in anti-party activities. Currently, he holds no post in the BJP,” said Shukla.