Dalit student murdered to grab scholarship money in UP

Ground Report | New Delhi: Dalit student murdered in UP; Kripa Shankar Gautam was a 20-year-old B.Tech student from MG Institute of Management and Technology, Lucknow. On 5 October, Kripa Shankar's family came to know through a newspaper cutting that his body was found hanging from a tree in the garden of an upper-caste man, 180 km from his residence.

The family had been searching for Kripa Shankar since September 30, when they got a call from his neighbor Akash Sharma that he was missing. On October 1, when Kripashankar's father went to his son's house, Akash, his mother, and landlord Sarvjit Vishwakarma were already there.

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They handed over Kripa Shankar's mobile phone and Aadhar card, which mentioned that he had left his phone and wallet behind. Kripa Shankar's father was quite surprised to know this.

He had filed a missing report on the same day. Kripa Shankar's uncle noticed that in the copy of the reports received by him, the statement of Kripa's father had been substantially modified.

On October 5, when his body was found, the police did not even explain exactly where, where, and how his final rights were done. When the family demanded his last remains, they were informed that his body had been buried. (Dalit student murdered in UP)

Kripa Shankar's family has alleged that their son was murdered by Akash Sharma and Sarvjit Vishwakarma for a scholarship amount of Rs 87,000, which was given to their son. It has now been almost two months since his demise and yet justice seems far away.

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Earlier, the police had told the family that they would not register an FIR until the names of the suspects were removed. The family alleged that they were being bullied and felt insecure.

Kripashankar's family has alleged that their son was murdered by Akash Sharma (Kripashankar's neighbour) and Sarvjit Vishwakarma (owner of the house where Kripashankar was staying in Lucknow) for a scholarship of Rs. 87,000 which was awarded to his son Kripashankar.

An FIR was registered in this case a month later, that too after public outcry and family struggle. The police was refusing to register the FIR until the family removed the name of the accused from it.

25 days before the FIR, no further action has been taken. UP Police has not yet taken the following accused into custody. The family is struggling, roaming everywhere and seeking justice.

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