Lucknow: Two cousins, aged 14 and 16 years, were found hanging from a tree in Kanpur’s Ghatampur area on Wednesday night, with family members alleging that they were sexually assaulted and blackmailed by three distant relatives. It was yet to be ascertained whether it was a suicide or murder.The accused, identified as Ramroop Nishad, his son Raju (18) and nephew Sanjay (19), were arrested Thursday. They have been booked under IPC sections 376 D (gang rape) and 306 (abetment to suicide), Pocso Act and IT Act.
Ramroop is a contractor at a brick kiln where the fathers of the two girls worked as labourers.
According to police, the victims’ family members said the two were forced to consume liquor and beaten up, before being sexually assaulted. The accused filmed the act and then started blackmailing them.
The minors had gone missing on Wednesday evening, and their bodies were later found barely 50 metres from their houses.
DCP South Ravindra Kumar said it appeared to be a case of suicide, but the murder angle had not been ruled out. The autopsy was going on till late Thursday.
Additional CP (law & order) Harish Chander said videos and photos of the two minors had been found on the mobile phones of the three accused, and had been sent for a forensic test.
