Police in Uttar Pradesh say that they have arrested three accused namely Ramroop Nishad, his son Raju and nephew Sanjay on suspicion of raping and murdering two girls in Kanpur. This was after the bodies of two minor girls were found hanging in Kanpur.
According to the UP Police, both the girls were allegedly murdered days after they were brutally raped by the three accused.
Both girls, aged 16 and 14, worked at a brick kiln in Kanpur where the accused raped them. Additional CP (law and order) Harish Chandra said that victims went missing on Wednesday and hours later in the evening, their bodies were found hanging from a tree, 400 metres from the brick kiln.
Local correspondents say that the girls had lodged the complaint with the owner of the brick kiln but the owner sent them home after humiliating them. This, they said, was due to the fact that the owner is related to the accused.
All three accused are residents of Hamirpur district in UP. They have been booked under the Indian Penal Code sections 376D (gang rape), 306 (abetment of suicide) and the Protection Of Children Against Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.