On Saturday, September 16, a minor Hindu girl in Uttar Pradesh’s Ambedkar Nagar was crushed to death while she was returning home from school. The accused Shahbaz and Arbaz had reportedly pulled her dupatta causing her to fall from her bicycle. Subsequently, the third accused Faizal killed her by running over his motorcycle on her. The accused were arrested under Sections 302, 354, 298 and 304 of the IPC along with relevant sections of the POCSO Act.
OpIndia on September 17 went to the deceased victim’s village in Ambedkar Nagar to meet her bereaved family. While speaking to them, we learnt that apart from the three arrested accused there was another person who was involved in the heinous murder of the minor Hindu girl.
The family also shared with us some personal information, like the hobbies and academic achievements of the deceased girl and spoke at length about the mental trauma she had been enduring recently because of the accused. They also gave us a detailed insight into what exactly transpired on the fateful day of September 16.
The deceased victim’s village is about 15 kilometres away from Tanda town in Ambedkar Nagar. The nearest market to the village is the Hirapur market. When we reached the deceased’s house, we saw all her family members and relatives sitting outside. The house they were staying in was in a really dilapidated condition.
The father of the deceased 17-year-old, Sabhajeet Verma, who looked miserable after losing his minor daughter, told us how despite acute poverty he was somehow sending his daughter to school so that she could make a career for herself and look after him in future. Crying inconsolably while remembering his daughter, Sabhajeet Verma said that there were actually four culprits behind his daughter’s murder.
Besides Shahbaz, Arbaz and Faisal, whom the police apprehended, he named Salim’s son Munnu as the fourth accused. Munnu, he claimed, was a resident of the Arthalwa town. Sabhajeet Verma said that he had completely lost his senses when he saw the dead body of his 17-year-old daughter which is why he forgot to name Munnu as the fourth culprit. He also sought action against Salim’s son Munnu, as well as the other accused.
Calling the murder a well-thought-out and pre-planned conspiracy, the deceased girl’s sister and father said that they were waiting for Yogi Adityanath’s bulldozer to arrive at the houses of the accused. Notably, Munnu, the fourth accused is still at large.
12वीं की पढ़ाई के बाद जो पिता अपनी बेटी को डॉक्टर बनाने के लिए भेजना चाहते थे बाहर… शहवाज, अरबाज, फैसल और सलीम का बेटा मुन्नू (अभी गिरफ्तार नहीं) के कारण उनको उठानी पड़ी अर्थी
— ऑपइंडिया (@OpIndia_in) September 18, 2023
ऑपइंडिया पहुँचा उस हिंदू पिता के पास, जिनके सपने कुचल दिए गए#OpIndiaExclusive #AmbedkarNagar… pic.twitter.com/z8dlWgrPmO
Sections of murder and POCSO added, Ambedkar Nagar SHO suspended
Speaking on this development, the Superintendent of Police of Ambedkar Nagar district said that Section 302 of the murder and POCSO Act have been increased in the case. Hanswar police station SHO Ritesh Kumar has been suspended and a new police station in-charge has been posted.
थाना हँसवर क्षेत्रांतर्गत एक स्कूली छात्रा की मृत्यु में नामजद तीनों अभियुक्तों को मेडिकल परीक्षण ले जाते समय अभियुक्तों द्वारा रास्ते में मौजूद पुलिस कर्मियों से असलहा छीन कर भागने का प्रयास करने के उपरांत हुई पुलिस मुठभेड़ के संबंध में पुलिस अधीक्षक द्वारा दी गई बाइट#UPPolice pic.twitter.com/4yg8lBHzqQ
— AMBEDKARNAGAR POLICE (@ambedkarnagrpol) September 17, 2023
OpIndia also spoke to the deceased’s elder sister who revealed how the accused had been harassing her younger sister for the last few months. They used to follow and hound the deceased continuously. About two months ago, the four accused had reached her house on two bikes, she said.
The sister added, “One day, my younger sister reached home on her bicycle. She was very scared. He told us how these youths had been following her from school and were waiting outside their house, Even though I had undergone surgery then and was advised bed rest I still rushed out to check but by then all four had fled.”
First pulled the dupatta then ran over the bike on her: Eyewitness in the Ambedkar Nagar murder case recounts the horror
OpIndia further spoke to the girl who was accompanying the deceased victim when the incident took place. She happened to be her cousin. She told us how the accused not only harassed them but also followed and hounded other girls at their school. She recalled how the accused used to come on their speeding motorcycles after school hours and harass the schoolgirls, adding that they did the same even a day prior to the incident.
जिसके साथ खेलती-पढ़ती थी, बेहतर जिंदगी के सपने देखती थी… उसने ऑपइंडिया को बताई सहेली के 'हत्यारे' बदमाशों की करतूत
— ऑपइंडिया (@OpIndia_in) September 18, 2023
"हमेशा बहुत तेज गाड़ी चला करते थे पीछा, मृतका के अलावे भी स्कूल की कई लड़कियों को करते थे परेशान"#OpIndiaExclusive #AmbedkarNagar #UPPolice pic.twitter.com/rer4PzERZN
Crying inconsolably, she said that on Friday, two of them came on a speeding motorcycle and the one sitting pillion pulled her dupatta from behind due to which lost her balance and her cycle drifted and she fell. Moments after that, Faisal ran the bike over her from behind. “By the time I reached there, blood was coming from her mouth and she could not say anything,” the friend said. Later, she was declared dead in the hospital.
The eyewitness cried bitterly while talking to us. She alleged that the four accused used to harass other girls in the same manner.
75-year-old grandfather bemoans losing his old age support
The deceased’s old grandfather sat before us crying inconsolably. “The deceased’s mother had died 8 years ago; it was she who was taking care of the household. From cooking to cleaning she managed everything along with her studies. Her two elder sister have gotten married and live at their in-laws house. I have a grandson who is still in class 5. It was she who took care of me and my son. I have lost my old age support, he lamented.
The Ambedkar Nagar Hindu victim wanted to become a doctor
The deceased’s father stated that his daughter wished to help people by becoming a doctor. He planned to send his daughter outside to study after class 12. The deceased’s sister reiterated her father’s sentiments. She was an exceptionally bright student, according to her sister, and when she died, the entire school staff gathered at their home to grieve her passing, she said.
The 17-year-old Hindu victim was an all-rounder
The deceased’s girl family gave us a tour of their house and the girl’s study room, which was filled with paintings made by her. One of her artworks especially caught our attention. It was a pencil sketch of a young girl donning a cap. The painting was placed on the wall beside a poster of Goddess Laxmi. Her father said that she was a very religious person and had immense faith in the Hindu goddess.
We also went through some of her notebooks, in which she had written her notes neatly in immaculate handwriting. Her chemistry notebook had remarks like ‘good’ from her subject teacher. Her school stationery including her geometry box was also kept very neatly in her room. Everything in the room was suggestive of her being a diligent student and an all-rounder.
Family wants nothing less than the death penalty for the accused
When OpIndia spoke with the deceased’s uncle, father, sister, and grandfather, they all said in unison that they demanded nothing less than the death sentence for the accused. The student’s father stated that he would be satisfied only when all four accused were hung to death.
“They should be made to stand in front of me and shot dead,” the destitute grandfather bemoaned.
“They should be killed like my sister was,” lamented the deceased’s elder sister.
