Unnao Murder: Two Arrested, Accused ‘Was in Love’ With Victim

The accused reportedly gave the girls pesticide to drink along with water, after one of them rejected his proposal.

Two Dalit girls, aged 13 and 16, were found dead on their family’s field in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district on Wednesday, 17 February.

(Photo edited by The Quint)

Two people, including a minor, were arrested on Friday, 19 February, for allegedly killing two girls by poisoning them in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao, a case which the police said is a “fallout of a one-sided love affair”.

The police said that the accused gave water mixed with pesticide to the girl who is now battling for her life in Kanpur hospital after she rejected his proposal and his demand for her phone number. The other two girls reportedly ended up consuming the water inadvertently.

“Vinay Kumar, alias Lambu, and a teenager have been held in connection with the case. The matter is a fallout of a one-sided love affair. The accused gave some pesticide with water to the three girls,” Lucknow Range IG Laxmi Singh was quoted by PTI as saying.

What Has the Investigation Revealed?

According to the police, Vinay Kumar is a resident of a neighbouring village and he owns an agricultural land adjacent to the girls’ farm. Kumar became friends with the three girls during the lockdown.

Singh said that Kumar fell in love with the 17-year-old and told her about it.

“He fell in love with the 17-year-old and told her about it. He asked her for her phone number but the girl refused, which made him angry. He committed the crime in anger and used insecticide kept at his farm and mixed it with water.”

Laxmi Singh was quoted as saying by The Indian Express

Singh further said that on Wednesday, Kumar had asked his minor friend to get snacks and the girls also got snacks from a shop. They met near Vinay’s farm and ate after which Kumar gave the 17-year-old the water. As per Vinay’s admission, the other two girls had the water even though he tried to stop them from drinking it. Vinay and his minor friend fled the scene when the girls fell unconscious.

The police have charged the accused with Sections 302 (murder) and Section 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code.

According to a report in The Indian Express, the two haven’t named anyone else during the interrogation and the police said that so far the evidence points towards the duo.

The arrests come after the two deceased girls were buried by the family. The third girl, who has been critical since the incident, is responding to treatment, the hospital said on Friday.

Unnao District Magistrate Ravindra Kumar has reportedly said that the government will bear the cost of the treatment of the girl in the hospital and her family will get Rs 2 lakh, while the families of the deceased girls will be given Rs 5 lakh each.