Sitapur triple murder, rape: Court raps U.P. police for “Worst Investigation” as six accused walk free

LUCKNOW: At a time when the state government is pursuing criminal offenses against women and children quite aggressively, the police investigation into the triple murder and rape of a 30-year-old woman and her two minor daughters in Sitapur in January 2018 has come under scrutiny after a local court questioned the poor investigation by the police.

While sentencing the prime accused to life imprisonment on murder charges, the court stated on Monday that although this gruesome act could not be committed single-handedly, the remaining six accused were acquitted due to insufficient evidence.

The court stated that the case is an example of the worst investigation, and it appears that the investigation officer attempted to destroy evidence and intentionally left loopholes in the investigation, rather than making efforts to collect evidence and establish the involvement of all accused in the crime.

Sitapur district government counsel Prashant Shukla said that the court had directed that a copy of the judgment be sent to the UP director general of police (DGP), Sitapur district judge, and superintendent of police to make them aware of how poorly the police investigation was conducted and to take further action in the matter.

Sharing case details, special public prosecutor Monica Shukla said that the bodies of two minor girls, stuffed in sacks, were found alongside a canal under the Hargaon police station limits of Sitapur on January 14, 2018, after which an FIR for murder was lodged at the same police station. She said the police, after arresting the accused Naveen Kumar Gupta, arrested six other accused and recovered the body of the siblings’ mother from under the Sarain river bridge on January 16, 2018. She said the six other people accused in the case were Dilip Sharma, Mohd Zubair, Rahul Lodh, Pankaj Kumar Lodh, Mukesh Kumar Lodh, and Rajesh Kumar Lodh. She added that the police charge-sheeted them in the case under various charges.

She further said that five accused, including Naveen, Dilip, Zubair, Rahul, and Pankaj, were charge-sheeted under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 302 for murder, 147 for committing a crime in a group, 149 for forming an unlawful assembly, and 201 for concealment of crime. She added that the sixth accused, Mukesh Kumar Lodh, was charge-sheeted under IPC section 376 for rape and section 4 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, along with the sections imposed on the first five accused. Meanwhile, the seventh accused, Rajesh Kumar Lodh, was charge-sheeted under IPC section 201 for concealment of crime.

After cross-examination and witness statements in the case, the special judge of the court designated for POCSO Act cases, Bhagirath Verma, observed in the judgment that the police had left several loopholes in the case in establishing the entire crime sequence and proving the links between the seven accused to demonstrate their collective involvement in the crime. The court mentioned that it appeared the investigating officer, the then in-charge of Hargaon police station, Ashwani Kumar Pandey, had deliberately destroyed evidence and left gaps instead of making efforts to collect evidence and establish the involvement of all accused in the crime.

JCB owner framed for not helping police

The court stated that the evidence and cross-examination suggest that the police initially attempted to conceal the crime and tried to bury the bodies of the two minors after their recovery. The court order noted that Zubair, in his defence, claimed that the police had intentionally framed him when he refused to provide his JCB machine to dig a pit for burying the bodies.

Lack of forensic evidence and CDRs

The court order further mentioned that the police alleged that Rajesh Lodh provided his black SUV to dump the bodies at two different locations. However, his SUV was found to be grey, and no traces of crime were found in the vehicle to establish his involvement. Apart from Naveen Kumar Gupta, who was in a relationship with the deceased woman following her strained relations with her husband, the connection of the other six accused was not established. The police also failed to produce the mobile call records of all the accused to prove they were familiar with each other and had collectively committed the crime.

What forensic experts say

GK Goswami, director of UPSIFS, emphasised the importance of forensic science in criminal investigations and the delivery of justice. He pointed out that the rape charges could have been easily substantiated if a forensic examination had been conducted during the investigation. He highlighted DNA sampling as a powerful tool that can lead to the conviction of accused individuals, even in decades-old cases. Goswami underscored the critical role of DNA sampling and forensic science in solving crimes and ensuring convictions in court.