Nearly six days after a 17-year-old resident of Saharanpur district — accused of killing his elder brother — jumped into the Gang canal in Roorkee while under police custody, a joint team of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand police fished out his body Sunday morning, said police.
The same joint team had fished out the body of his elder brother 20-year-old Avesh from the same canal on May 17, said police. Police said Shoaib, the younger brother, had confessed to having killed his only sibling Avesh by pushing him into the canal in Roorkee, where they had gone from their native Malli village in UP’s Saharanpur on May 13.
A team of Saharanpur police reached Malli village Sunday afternoon with Shoaib’s body but the family refused to accept it, alleging that police tortured the 17-year-old at Gagalheri police station in Saharanpur after being taken into custody on suspicion of his involvement in the killing of his elder brother.
The family also claimed that when Shoaib succumbed to the police torture, they dumped his body into the canal on May 16 and concocted the story that he jumped into the canal while being taken to the crime scene of his elder brother. Later, Saharanpur MP Haji Fazlur Rehman, Samajwadi Party Saharanpur MLA Ashu Malik, BSP leader Imran Masood and other political leaders visited Malli village and convinced the family to perform the last rites of their son, which was then conducted late Sunday evening. “We talked to SSP Vipin Tada and asked him to probe the allegations levelled by the family. The SSP assured us of an impartial probe,” said Malik.
Saharanpur Deputy SP (Sadar) Ruchi Gupta said that police have “clinching evidence” that Shoaib had pushed his elder brother into the canal when they had gone to Roorkee on May 13.
“Their father had received an SMS saying that his elder son was killed. The message was sent from the mobile phone of his elder son and the internet on the handset was activated through the hotspot from Shoaib’s handset. We took him into custody and he confessed to having killed his brother. Before we could further question him to know the reason behind the killing, he ended his life,” said the officer. “When Shoaib was being taken to the crime spot by police, his family members accompanied him. So, the charges levelled by the family are baseless,” said the DSP. Police said Shoaib’s father Taufiq Ahmed had lodged a complaint at the Gagalheri police station in the morning on May 14 that his elder son Avesh had gone missing and he received an SMS about his death later in the evening.