A 20-year-old rape victim was hacked to death by a man accused of her rape and his elder brother near her residence in Kaushambi district of Uttar Pradesh on Monday evening.
According to police, the incident took place after the victim lodged a complaint at a nearby police station earlier in the day.
The complaint detailed alleged coercion from the accused, who is currently out on bail, and his family to reach a compromise in the rape case. The woman said that the accused’s elder brother, under the influence of alcohol, had been continuously harassing and threatening the victim’s family. Both the woman and the accused are from the same community and neighbours as well.
On her way back home from the police station, the victim passed by the accused’s residence, where he launched verbal abuse at her.
According to the police, the victim tried recording the incident on her phone. To this, the accused responded by attacking her with an axe, inflicting fatal blows to her head. The victim was rushed to the hospital but was declared ‘brought dead’ by the doctors.
A senior police official said that the victim had reported harassment by the accused and his family earlier that day. The police advised her to return home, assuring her they would soon investigate the matter.
Also Read: Aluva child rape case: Convict Asafaq Alam sentenced to death by Kerala court
“The accused killed the woman even before she could reach home from the police station,” The Indian Express quoted the police officer as saying.
The victim’s family has filed a First Information Report (FIR) against the 24-year-old rape accused and his family, including his elder brother, on charges of murder. As of now, no arrests have been made, and the accused’s family members have fled their residence.
Brijesh Srivastava, Superintendent of Police, Kaushambi, told The Indian Express that efforts are being made to locate and apprehend the accused.
Also Read: Agra: Five including woman arrested for gangrape, assault of employee at hotel
According to the police, the victim and the accused had been in a relationship for the last few years. When the accused refused to marry her, the victim resorted to filing a rape case against him last year.
Despite a village panchayat attempting to mediate and convince the accused to marry the victim, he refused, leading to the filing of a formal FIR by the victim.
Police investigations resulted in the accused’s arrest and a subsequent jail term of approximately one-and-a-half years. However, he was released on bail just 15 days prior to the incident.