Uttar Pradesh: Youth shot dead in front of father for testifying in rape case

MEERUT: In a shocking incident, a 27-year-old man was shot dead in front of his father in broad daylight for testifying in court in a rape case in a village in Kairana.
According to police sources, two youths in their late 20s have been booked for murder and “efforts are on to arrest the culprits”.
The crime was committed on Monday in the agricultural fields of Bhura village in Shamli’s Kairana town.
According to father of the deceased, who witnessed the murder, “I was going to the field with my son when all of a sudden, Sunny Singh and Shubham Kumar emerged from the bushes and told my son, 'you are too eager to testify against us in court. Now, we will kill you in front of your father.’ Soon afterwards, they dragged my son into the field. I cried and pleaded with them to spare him. Another farmer Kuldeep also joined me as we tried to reason with them, but they shot him dead in front of us. My son was a witness in a rape case, in which both killers were accused.”
Before fleeing the spot, the accused also threatened to kill the father of the deceased if he spoke against the two in court.
Additional superintendent of police OP Singh said, “The accused have been booked under IPC’s section 302 (murder) and efforts are on to arrest the culprits.”
According to sources, the two youths had raped a 30-year-old woman of the same village two years ago, for which they had gone to jail but came out on bail a year ago.
(The victim's identity has not been revealed to protect her privacy as per Supreme Court directives on cases related to sexual assault)