Congress for CBI probe into UP girl's murder

New Delhi, Jun 13: Sharpening its attack on the Mayawati government, Congress today (June 13) demanded a CBI probe into the alleged rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl in Lakhimpur district, saying the CB-CID inquiry ordered by the Uttar Pradesh government was meant to "cover up" the issue.

"The law and order of Uttar Pradesh is getting from bad to worse and now murders are taking place even in police stations. We do not have faith in the state police and demand a CBI inquiry into the incident," senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh told reporters here.

Singh, who is AICC general secretary in-charge of UP, alleged that the state police wanted to suppress the issue and hence a thorough probe should be held into the matter to fix responsibility from top to bottom.

"Law and order in Uttar Pradesh was bad in Mulayam Singh Yadav's time and it has gone worse now because BSP leaders and workers interfere in posting and transfer of police officers," he said.

Facing the opposition onslaught over the incident, the Uttar Pradesh government has ordered a CB-CID probe into the alleged rape and murder of the girl inside the premises of a police station in Lakhimpur district.

An FIR has been lodged against a sub-inspector and two policemen for tampering with evidence.

A 10-member team of the the CB-CID, which has been asked to submit its report within a week, visited the scene of the incident.

The team, led by SP Shriprakash Tripathi, examined records at the police station and recorded statements of the girl's family.

Eleven policemen posted at Nighasan Police Station had been suspended after the girl's body was found.

Condemning the incident as "shocking and barbaric", opposition parties said the law and order had deteriorated in the state.

PTI