| Date | 27 May 2014 |
|---|---|
| Location | Katra Shahadatganj, Badaun, Uttar Pradesh, India |
| Participants | Local villagers |
| Deaths | Two girls |
| Suspects | Up to seven |
| Accused | Pappu Yadav, Awadhesh Yadav and Urvesh Yadav (brothers), initially accused of rape and murder; Chhatrapal Yadav and Sarvesh Yadav (police constables), were initially accused,[1] however CBI refused to press charges[2] |
| Charges | alleged Gang rape and murder |
On 27 May 2014, a gang rape and murder of two teenage girls was reported in the Katra village of Budaun district (also spelled as Badayun), Uttar Pradesh, India. It was widely reported in the press in India as well as overseas. After an extensive investigation, CBI concluded that there was no gang rape[citation needed] and the suspects were released. However, on 28 October 2015 the POCSO court rejected the CBI closure report; it was a major setback for CBI.
According to reports, in the evening the girls had gone out into a field that was used for open defecation and did not return. The police were notified, but initially took no action. Villagers searched for the girls throughout the night and they were found the following morning hanging from a tree.[3][4][5]
According to a post-mortem examination conducted earlier, it was reported that the girls had been raped[6] and died from strangulation due to being hanged while still alive.[7][8] However, according to a CBI investigation, no evidence of rape was found, and the initial examination, conducted by physician who had never conducted rape investigations before, was flawed.[9] The girl's family and several activists rejected the CBI report as a cover-up "to avoid international shame and acceptance of the dismal law and order situation".[6][10][11]
The girls' family and others have charged that the local police attempted a cover-up of the incident due to the lower status of the family. Some of the earliest reports claimed that the family belong to a "Dalit" caste.[12] Later reports contradicted the report of the victims belonging to the Dalit community. On 6 June 2014, the Indian government began a review of the case and determined that because "a concerted effort of a blame game has taken shape by the officials manning the administration" investigating the case, "it is necessary for the court to monitor the investigation".[13]
The case has gained both national and international attention. In a statement, the humanitarian organisation Save the Children India called the attack "part of an alarming trend of brutal violence against those from marginalised communities".[14]
The CBI announced in on 27 November 2014 that they have concluded that the two cousins were not sexually assaulted and murdered as police initially said, but took their own lives.[15][16][17] Through the use of phone records it was established that the older girl was, in fact, having an affair with 20-year-old Pappu Yadav,[18] with whom she had shared about 400 calls.[19]