Police have arrested 16 individuals believed to be linked to the murder of five family members in Fatehpur village, Deoria district, Uttar Pradesh. The incident happened as an apparent act of retribution following a long-standing land dispute.
The incident began on Monday morning when Prem Prakash Yadav (53), a former zila panchayat member, was hacked to death while visiting the residence of Satya Prakash Dubey and his family. It is alleged that the Dubey family was seeking revenge for a protracted land dispute between the two parties.
A group associated with Prem Prakash Yadav reportedly attacked and killed Satya Prakash Dubey (54), his wife Kiran Devi (52), his son Dipesh (known as Gandhi, aged 15), and his daughters Saloni (17) and Nandini (10). Anmol (8), one of the Dubey children, survived the assault and is currently receiving critical medical care in a local hospital.
To maintain peace and order, a substantial police presence has been deployed in the village.
Late on Monday night, police registered cross-FIRs at the Rudrapur police station. In a bid to resolve the underlying land dispute, teams from the district administration and the revenue department conducted inspections of the disputed properties, including agricultural land and houses belonging to Prem Prakash Yadav’s family.
The first FIR, filed by Dubey’s daughter, Shobhita Dwivedi (27), named 27 individuals and nearly 50 unidentified individuals in connection with her family’s killings. In a second FIR, Prem Prakash’s uncle accused Satya Prakash Dubey and four of his family members (who later died) of murdering his nephew.
Also Read: Decoding the importance of data protection for financial institutions
Deoria SP Sankalp Sharma provided an update, stating, “All five persons booked for the murder of Prem Prakash are dead. So far, we have arrested 16 people for the murder of Satya Prakash and his family members. Of those arrested, 12 were named in the FIR, and the role of the remaining four came to light during the investigation.” Police efforts are currently underway to locate the suspects.
In her complaint, Shobhita Dwivedi referenced a prior incident in 2014 when Prem Prakash Yadav allegedly kidnapped her uncle Gyan Prakash Dubey and forcibly made him transfer his agricultural land, subsequently leading to a protracted legal dispute.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath personally visited Baba Raghav Das Medical College in Gorakhpur on Tuesday to meet eight-year-old Anmol Dubey, the sole survivor of the devastating attack on his family. The Chief Minister instructed hospital authorities to ensure that Anmol receives the best possible medical care.