STATE COUNSEL SHOT DEAD IN ETAH, UP : THIRD ATTACK ON A WOMAN LAWYER WITHIN 2 MONTHS IN UP.
The state government counsel of Uttar Pradesh Nutan Yadav was found dead on Monday. The victim was shot dead at her residence in Etah, UP on Monday night, amounting as the third incident of murder of a woman lawyer in UP.
After the maid of the 35 year old victim found and alerted the police of the blood covered body at the official residence of Yadav , the Inspector-General of Police (Law & Order) Praveen Kumar said that “An FIR has been registered against two persons, Dhanpal Yadav and Bharat Singh on the complaint of her parents under sections 302 (murder) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC. .”[1] Bharat Singh has been detained by the police.
The victim was posted as the assistant prosecution officer of additional chief magistrate (ACJM) at the Jalesar court in Etah district. She hailed from Kushalpur village in the Behran area of Agra district and used to live at the government quarters in Etah near the police lines. Her parents informed the police that she was unmarried and she lived with her younger brother Raghuvendra Singh for almost a year, but sometimes her family members used to accompany her for staying in his absence.
The police, during preliminary investigation observed that, Yadav was shot 5 times from a close range with four bullet marks on her face and one on the chest was found. No evidence of a rape attempt was discovered. The Assistant Superintendent of Police(ASP), revealed to the media that “Prima facie, love affair seems to be the reason behind the murder,” because Raghuvendra stated in his FIR report that Dhanpal Yadav being victim’s friend for nearly 15 years used to accompany her at her official residence in his absence and when he found out about “Nutan’s decision to marry another he threatened to commit suicide”[2]. The police also stated that except the detained individuals mentioned above, all those who visited the victim including her family members shall also be kept under the radar of suspicion. However, on the night of the murder she was “apparently” alone as her brother had left for some work on Saturday.
Shockingly, No gunshots were heard by
the neighbors and the surrounding bodies including the police station which was
100m away from her residence, and neither was the culprit’s entry a forced one,
assuring, the culprits to be acquaintances or people whom the victim knew very
well. The Superintendent of Police, assumes that “ killer shot her
from point-blank range and the noise coming out of jumbo size cooler in
the flat might be the reason why the neighbors could not hear any sound of gunshot,” [3]
This was an attack after 2 more incidents that had taken place in UP itself on female lawyers. On 12th June, Darvesh Yadav was shot dead by advocate Manish Sharma with 3 bullet wounds, in an open fire in the Agra district court premises during her welcome ceremony as the first ever female president of UP Bar council. Later on, the murderer shot himself with the same pistol.
In another incident on July4, Kuljeet Kaul, 60 year Supreme Court lawyer was found dead at her residence in Sector 31, Noida. The claimed suspects had tied up her hands and legs with a piece of cloth stuffed tightly in her mouth. Victim’s valuables including gold jewelry was found missing.
Reporting of such incidents has acted as a catalyst for omnipresent fear amongst the citizens of the state of Uttar Pradesh. Sadly, no strict and swift actions have yet been taken against such crimes in the state.
By:
Sanskriti Rastogi
Student Reporter INBA
[1] https://www.shethepeople.tv/news/advocate-nutan-yadav-shot-dead
[2] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/woman-lawyer-shot-five-times-in-etah/articleshow/70562512.cms
[3] https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/agra/woman-lawyer-shot-five-times-in-etah/articleshow/70562512.cms