A MONTH after the rape and murder of Badaun cousins, it has emerged that the fathers of the two girls had transferred Rs 1 lakh each to the bank accounts of the main eyewitness, Babu Ram alias Najru, and their third brother, who is a witness before the CBI ? from the Rs 5 lakh compensation that they had accepted from the BSP.
Sources said the transaction was made from the Kisan Gramin Bank account in Badaun.
The fathers of the girls have reportedly told the CBI, which is investigating the case, that they transferred the money to help Najru, who is ?like a brother? to them, and their younger brother, since both stopped working in the fields since this tragedy broke out, and have been helping them in the case.
Significantly, investigators have also found the SIM of the broken mobile phone submitted by the girls? family last week was purchased 12 days before the incident from a mobile shop near the village. Sources said enquiries have revealed that the SIM was purchased by a woman with a fake identification proof and whose identity is yet to be established.
Bodies of the two girls, aged 14 and 15, were found hanging from a tree at Katra Sadatganj village on May 28. Post-mortem reports had confirmed rape and hanging before death. The phone was reportedly given to the maternal uncle of the older of the two deceased girls by their family after the bodies were brought down from the tree.
Sources added the family members of the victims who had first denied any knowledge of either girls having a mobile phone finally accepted they had found a phone on the person of the older girl after her body was taken down.
The phone in a broken state was reportedly submitted to the CBI team in the investigative agency?s Badaun headquarters last week by the fathers of the two girls. Sources said the investigative agency is also trying to retrieve files of audio and video recordings in the phone
The victims? fathers, Najru and the girls? uncle Ram Babu have given their consent before a local court and to the CBI for lie detector tests that are expected to be conducted next week.
Lie detector tests were done over in the last three days on all the five accused, including the two police constables who have been terminated from service.
