3 arrested over rape-murder of Dalit woman in Ayodhya

Ayodhya (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 3 (ANI): Three people were arrested in connection with an alleged murder of a Dalit girl in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya, the police said.
Earlier, Congress leader and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi condemned the brutal murder of a Dalit girl in Ayodhya and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party government in Uttar Pradesh of being "anti-Bahujan," adding that the "heinous atrocities" have been on the rise in the state.
Alleging that the administration didn't pay heed to the victim girl's family's cry for help, Rahul questioned how many more families will have to suffer like this.
In a post on X, Rahul said, "The inhumanity and brutal murder of a Dalit daughter in Ayodhya is heart-breaking and very shameful. If the administration had paid heed to the cry for help of the girl's family that had been echoing for three days, perhaps her life could have been saved."
"Another daughter's life ended due to this heinous crime. After all, how many more families will have to cry and suffer like this? Under the anti-Bahujan BJP rule, especially in Uttar Pradesh, the heinous atrocities, injustice and murders against Dalits are increasing rampantly."
Furthermore, Gandhi appealed to the authorities to treat the victim's family with dignity and not subject them to harassment, as he claimed had happened in similar cases in the past.
"The Uttar Pradesh government should immediately investigate this crime, ensure that the culprits are given the harshest punishment and take strict action against the responsible policemen. And please do not harass the victim's family as usual. The daughters of the country and the entire Dalit community are looking towards you for justice," he added.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party MP Awadhesh Prasad on Sunday broke down and wept at a press conference after the unclothed body of a Dalit girl was found in a village in Uttar Pradesh.
Addressing a press conference, he lashed out at the state government, terming it an "extremely sad and inhuman" crime. He further said that if justice is not served, he would resign from the Lok Sabha.
Earlier, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi also slammed the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government and stated that in the "BJP's Jungle Raj," no one listens to the "cries of Dalits, tribals, backward and poor."
"The kind of barbarism that was meted out to a Dalit girl who had gone to listen to the Bhagwat Katha in Ayodhya would send shivers down the spine of any human being. Such cruel incidents shame all of humanity," Priyanka Gandhi said in a post on X.
"The girl was missing for three days but the police did nothing. In the BJP's Jungle Raj, no one is there to listen to the cries of Dalits, tribals, backward and poor. The UP government has become synonymous with atrocities on Dalits. I demand that strict action be taken against those guilty of atrocities as well as the responsible policemen and officers," she added.
Meanwhile, Priyanka Maurya, member of UP Women Commission met victims' families and assured them of justice in the incident.
Speaking to ANI after meeting the victim's family, Maurya said, "It is a very sad incident. I came here to meet the family members of the victim. I assured their family that justice will be served. Whoever has committed this incident should understand that the Yogi government is in the state and the family will get justice." (ANI)