Hathras Case: Would You’ve Cremated Your Own Daughter This Way, Allahabad High Court Asks Uttar Pradesh ADG

The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on October 12 reportedly chided the UP Police for cremating the 19-year-old Dalit woman who died after allegedly being raped by four upper-caste men in Uttar Pradesh’s Hathras in the middle of the night. According to the counsel for the victim's family, the Bench of Justices Pankaj Mithal and Rajan Roy asked ADG (Law and Order), Prashant Kumar, if he would have allowed his daughter to be cremated the same way? The court also questioned if the police action would have been similar if the victim came from a rich family, the counsel told media after the hearing. The HC bench had summoned UP Additional Chief Secretary, DGP, Hathras DM and SP, apart from the ADG (Law and Order). The victim's family also appeared before the court to record their statement. The victim's family urged the court to transfer the case out of the state as they ‘did not have faith in the local authorities’. They requested for security till the end of the judicial procedure and also demanded that reports of CBI be kept confidential. The District Magistrate of Hathras Praveen Kumar Laxkar, who also appeared before the court, accepted that it was his decision to cremate the victim’s body in the night. He said it was done to control the law and order situation. The court has fixed the next hearing in the matter on November 2.