Unnao SP Harish Kumar had sought permission from the district magistrate for exhumation on Friday
The Unnao district administration on Saturday began the process of exhuming the body of 32-year-old Yunus Khan, a witness in the murder case of the father of a teenage girl raped in the district last year. A heavy police force was deployed in Makhi area as Khan’s family had opposed the exhumation claiming it was against Sharia law, and had protested with other local residents earlier in the day. Unnao SP Harish Kumar had sought permission from the district magistrate for exhumation on Friday on the basis of an inquiry report by Circle Officer, Safipur (Unnao), Vipin Ranjan Rai.
Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Hasanganj (Unnao), Suraj Kumar Yadav said, “We tried our best to convince the family, but they did not agree. We also called the shahar qazi to convince them, but he too failed in his attempt. Since it was essential to exhume the body, we started the process in the evening in the presence of the shahar qazi to ensure that all rituals are followed under Sharia law.”
“No family members of Yunus were present,” Kumar said, adding that the body would be sent for an autopsy.
Khan, who used to run a grocery shop, had died on August 18. His family had buried the body without informing the CBI, which is probing the murder case of the rape victim’s father. While Khan’s family claimed he died of a liver disease, the uncle of the rape victim alleged he was murdered.
Jailed BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar was arrested on April 13 this year on charges of raping the girl in June last year. Her father had died in judicial custody on April 9. CBI had chargesheeted five persons including Singh’s brother Atul Singh for allegedly killing the rape victim’s father. The other four accused are Vineet Mishra, Birendra Singh alias Bauwa Singh, Ram Sharan Singh alias Sonu Singh and Shashi Pratap alias Suman.
“Yunus was among the 12 people who told CBI they witnessed the accused thrashing the girl’s father when he reached the village on April 3. Among the 12 witnesses are six family members of the dead (father), while the others are neighbours,” said a CBI officer.
“In his statement to CBI, Yunus had claimed to have witnessed the accused catching hold of the rape victim’s father in front of his shop and thrashing him. The sequence of assault began in front of Yunus’s shop. The accused later paraded the girl’s father for a stretch of 300 mts. Other witnesses also claimed to have seen the accused thrashing Yunus,” the officer added.
“Yunus’ statement was not recorded before a magistrate. Since there are other witnesses, his death will not impact the case. The trial is yet to begin,” the officer said.