‘5 people are going to die’: Amethi family murder suspect announced on messaging app

LUCKNOW The brazen wipeout of the Dalit family in UP’s Amethi drew widespread denunciation of the Rae Bareli police, which allegedly failed to decode the “writing on the wall” even after the prime suspect Chandan Verma’s “clear intentions” on his WhatsApp Bio that stated: “5 people are going to die, I will show you soon”.

The man also tried to kill himself after the murder of the family but failed in his attempt, said police.

Verma’s app status surfaced on September 12, nearly three weeks after Dalit primary school teacher Sunil Kumar’s wife Poonam Bharti filed an FIR against Chandan Verma under appropriate Bhartiya Nyay Sanhita sections for alleged stalking and molestation in Rae Bareli on August 18. The complainant also mentioned that Verma abused her and her husband using casteist remarks following which the section of SC/ST Act for atrocities against Dalits was also slapped on him.

In the FIR, the complainant mentioned that “If anything happens to me or my family, Verma should be held responsible for it.”

The couple’s fear came true when unidentified assailants barged into their rented house in Ahorwa Bhawani area under Shivratanganj police station limits of Amethi district on Thursday and sprayed the entire family with bullets. The deceased included Sunil Kumar, 35, his wife Poonam, 32, and their two daughters - Drishti, 5 ,and Micky (18 months).

The audacious murder of the entire Dalit family hinted at the involvement of Chandan Verma and his accomplices. Talking to media persons over phone, Poonam Bharti’s brother Bhanu pointed towards Verma and his aides’ role in the incident. He said his sister and brother-in-law were being troubled by Verma for months and the Rae Bareli police were reluctant to act on their complaint on August 18. The FIR was lodged after much pursuance, he alleged.

“Two days ago, I had a conversation with my brother-in-law. He informed that two accomplices of Verma were spotted loitering near his rented house in Amethi. He had raised apprehension of attack by Verma and had informed a Rae Bareli cops involved in the previous FIR investigation, but this incident happened before the police could gauge the seriousness of the matter. Verma often used to call my brother-in-law and trouble him,” he said.

Speaking to media persons in Amethi, deceased teacher Sunil Kumar’s father Ram Gopal believed that this gruesome incident would not have unfolded had the police acted over his daughter-in-law’s complaint.

“With my son gone, I am left with no support. I am over 60 years old, and have one more son, who lives separately,” he shared with the media.

CO (city) in Rae Bareli, Amit Singh, the investigation officer of the previous FIR, had his own explanation for not taking stern action against Chandan Verma. He said the accused had no past crime record but he remained in police custody for around 24 hours after being booked under BNSS sections for precautionary measures. He said the charge sheet was also filed against Verma in court on September 23.

Singh, however, could not give a justified response on whether the police were tracking Verma’s activities and took any step to curb him when the couple informed the Rae Bareli police about his repetitive calls and his accomplices were spotted near their house in Amethi.

Father wants the same fate for culprits

Ram Gopal, who lost his son, daughter-in-law and two granddaughters to a brutal murder in Amethi, said on Friday that he wished to see the culprit meet the same fate. He was talking to media persons at the Amethi post-mortem house where he came to claims the bodies.

“The way my son has gone, their (culprits) condition should also be like that,” he said.

However, he recalled his daughter-in-law telling him in the past that she had approached the police and lodged a complaint against Verma. “Kiya hota to aaj ye durdasha na hoti (had any action been taken, this would not have happened today),” Ram Gopal told reporters.