UP: Woman killed over ‘friendship with youth’; 4 of family, village head held

Police learnt about the case on May 14 when a resident of a neigbouring village, 10 km from the victim’s village, spotted a partially-hidden piece of cloth in a bush in the field, said an investigating officer (IO). They found the body of a woman in the field.

“The resident told police that a few days ago, he had spotted some locals of the neighbouring village around the area. Police went to the victim’s village with a photograph of the body. Villagers identified the woman. A few locals told us that she had committed suicide after consuming poisonous substance,” said the officer.
However, the postmortem report stated that the woman died of an injury inflicted on her head with a blunt object, said the IO.

“We questioned the mother in length, and she confessed to the crime. She told us that the family objected to her daughter’s friendship with a local youth. Despite several warnings, she did not end her relationship with the youth. On May 11, she was again speaking to the same youth on her mobile phone. Angry, the mother hit the woman on the head with a stick, rendering her unconscious,” said the IO.

When the victim regained conscious, she kept vomiting.

“The family informed the village head that the woman had consumed some poisonous substance, following which she was regularly vomiting. She died at night. Her minor brother and the village head carried the body on a motorcycle to the neighbouring village, while her mother, uncle and elder brother also reached the spot to bury it,” said the officer.