Murder of child in Aligarh: Fact-checking social media claims - Alt News
Arjun Sidharth
6th June 2019 / 7:35 pm / Last updated: 7th June 2019
The body of a two and a half-year old girl was found on June 2 in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh. The accused- Zahid and Aslam have been arrested by the police. Several netizens expressed outrage over the incident.
Many among those who tweeted about the incident have claimed that the young girl was raped before she was murdered. It has also been claimed that her eyes were gouged out and acid was poured on her body.
…and her body was disposed in garbage, left to be eaten by stray dogs. pic.twitter.com/oGCYe8qtzd
— Madhur (@ThePlacardGuy) June 5, 2019
The above tweet has been retweeted close to 10,000 times so far. Others who asserted the same in their condemnation of the murder include Prashant Patel Umrao , Koena Mitra, Shefali Vaidya and Raveena Tandon.
Remember this? A systematic, vicious paid campaign to malign icons sacred to Hindu Dharma that was carried out in media and SM after the #Kathua case? Where are all those people now? Why no such outrage over Mohammed Zahid raping and killing a 3 yr old Hindu girl in #Aligarh https://t.co/4UvybBWh4m
— Shefali Vaidya ஷெஃபாலி வைத்யா शेफाली वैद्य (@ShefVaidya) June 6, 2019
The post-mortem report conducted on the deceased has no mention of rape. This was clarified by Aligarh police via a tweet, in response to a social media user who claimed that the victim had been raped.
मृतक ट्विंकल के शव के पोस्टमार्टम रिपोर्ट में दुष्कर्म का होना नही पाया गया है। रूपये के लेन-देन को लेकर बालिका का गला घोटकर हत्या की गई है। अभि0 जाहिद व असलम को गिरफ्तार कर जेल भेजा जा चुका है। अभि0 पर NSA के तहत कार्यवाही की जा रही है। पुलिस द्वारा FTC कोर्ट में पैरवी की जायेगी
— ALIGARH POLICE (@aligarhpolice) June 6, 2019
According to Aligarh police, the post-mortem report reveals the victim was strangulated. Two persons- Zahid and Aslam were arrested and sent to jail. Financial dispute was the motive for the crime. The same was reiterated by SSP Aligarh in a video bite posted on Twitter by Aligarh police.
उक्त प्रकरण मे @sspaligarh @ips06akash महोदय द्वारा दी गयी बाईट । pic.twitter.com/DgnmIHtIwe
— ALIGARH POLICE (@aligarhpolice) June 6, 2019
Alt News contacted Akash Kulhary, SSP Aligarh who confirmed that the post-mortem report does not mention rape, adding, “The post-mortem report mentions death by strangulation as the cause. The claims circulating on social media that the victim’s eyes were gouged out and her arm amputated, are also false. Also, the claim that acid was poured on her body, is untrue. No such thing has occurred. The post-mortem report has been shared with the family of the victim.”
UPDATE: After this article was published on June 6, the post-mortem report of the victim was posted on social media. The report states, “right arm detached (amputated)…and nibbled by insect up to the limit that bone exposed at places”. Alt News contacted SSP Aligarh once again, who said that the victim’s right arm was amputated, but that the cause of amputation is not clear. The article has been updated accordingly.
OpIndia was among those who had falsely claimed that the victim’s eyes were gouged out.
The incident has resulted in an outpouring of rage, and rightly so. The brutality of the incident is shocking to say the least. However, it may be noted that there is no mention of rape, and neither were the victim’s eyes gouged out nor acid poured on her body, as claimed on social media. The misinformation surrounding the incident, which has been shared by social media users has the potential to further exacerbate tension and mistrust. Alt News advises readers and followers to verify information before sharing it on social media, particularly if it is of such sensitive nature.
UPDATE: The article has been updated with new information since it was published on June 6. For details, kindly refer to the article.
Arjun Sidharth is a writer with Alt News. He has previously worked in the television news industry, where he managed news bulletins and breaking news scenarios, apart from scripting numerous prime time television stories. He has also been actively involved with various freelance projects. Sidharth has studied economics, political science, international relations and journalism. He has a keen interest in books, movies, music, sports, politics, foreign policy, history and economics. His hobbies include reading, watching movies and indoor gaming.
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