india

Updated: Jun 25, 2019 23:49 IST

The mother and aunt of a 22-year-old woman were killed and two other members of her family injured on Monday when a man ploughed his speeding car into them at Chandpur in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr after they rebuked him for allegedly attempting to molest her, police said.

Senior police superintendent N Kolanchi said the family was returning from a wedding when they noticed Nakul Singh, the accused, relieving himself near their house.

When the woman’s mother and aunt objected, Singh allegedly tried to molest the 22-year-old woman.

The alleged attempt angered the two and they berated Singh. The police said Singh left after threatening them with dire consequences.

Kolanchi said the accused soon returned with his friends in a car and allegedly rammed the vehicle into the women as they stood outside their house.

The two women, aged 42 and 38, died at a hospital while two others are under treatment there.

Singh was arrested on Tuesday from Bulandshahr. Kolanchi said efforts to arrest Singh’s accomplices were on.

Chandpur residents earlier took to the streets to protest against the incident. They took the bodies of the two women to National Highway 91, which connects Delhi with Kanpur.

They blocked the highway while demanding strict punishment for the alleged killers. The residents lifted the blockade only after senior police officers reached the spot and assured the family of action.

The police had initially registered an accident case on Monday night.

Kolanchi said Singh and two others was later also booked under Indian Penal Code’s sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder) and 354 (assault or criminal force with intent to outrage modesty) on the family’s complaint.

The identities of the two other accused were not immediately known.

“It is not clear whether the molester was alone in the vehicle or he had accomplices, but police have registered a First Information Report against three people on the complaint of the family members,’’ said Kolanchi.

“During interrogation, Nakul Singh refuted the charges that he deliberately killed the women and claimed that the accident occurred when they suddenly appeared in front of his car.”

Bulandshahr’s police superintendent, Atul Kumar Srivastava, said the family has insisted that the killings were intentional and that they will conduct a thorough investigation to verify the charges.

(With agency inputs)