Kasganj custodial death: Police say girl is not a minor

Police also said that the kidnapping charge against the 22-year-old, Altaf, who was found dead at a police station on November 9, would be dropped as the couple knew each other.

In a new development in the Kasganj custodial death case, police said the girl who was reported missing by her family is not a minor. Police also said that the kidnapping charge against the 22-year-old, Altaf, who was found dead at a police station on November 9, would be dropped as the couple knew each other.

Last week, Altaf was picked up for questioning on a complaint by the girl’s family, who accused him of kidnapping her. He was charged under Sections 363 (kidnapping) and 366 (kidnapping, abducting or inducing woman to compel her marriage) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Altaf was found dead at the police station on November 9. Police claimed that he had hanged himself with a drawstring from the hood of his jacket, using a water pipe in a toilet that is a couple of feet from the ground.

The girl was produced before a local court on Monday, and her statement was recorded before a magistrate. Police said they had found her at the Kasganj railway station on Friday.

“The father of the woman had stated in his complaint that she is a minor. It was found that she is 19 years old. The section of kidnapping that had earlier been added to the FIR will be removed. Once the copy of her statement before the magistrate is obtained, further action will be considered,” said Botre Rohan Pramod, Kasganj SP.

Police had earlier said the couple were in a relationship, but had fallen out. “Altaf told us that they had been in a relationship,” the SP had said.

A departmental inquiry and a magisterial probe into the custodial death are being conducted simultaneously.

Meanwhile, police said they are looking for a man who was reportedly in touch with Atlaf. According to police, this man is suspected to have accompanied the 19-year-old to several places before she was found at the Kasganj railway station.

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