The two girls went missing from their house on the night of May 27 and their bodies were found hanging from a mango tree in the village orchard the next morning. (File photo)
The Central Bureau of Investigation has decided to exhume the bodies of two young girls who were found hanging from a tree in a small village in Badaun, Uttar Pradesh, in May this year.
The investigating agency, which was handed the case amid global outrage, wants a fresh autopsy conducted on the bodies of the girls, cousins aged 14 and 15 years, who were allegedly gang-raped before being murdered. (
India in 'Dereliction of Duty' Over Rapes: UN Watchdog)
Late last month the CBI completed lie-detector or polygraph tests on all the five men accused in case and said it had recorded some "deviations" in their statements. (
Lie Detector Test for Fathers of Teens Who Were Raped and Hanged Alive)
CBI sources had also said that it could carry out similar tests on the families of the victims as well. The sources refused to divulge details, saying it could hamper investigation.
The two girls went missing from their house on the night of May 27 and their bodies were found hanging from a mango tree in the village orchard the next morning. Post-mortem reports had confirmed that they were raped before being murdered. (
Badaun Case: Girl's Family Demands CBI Probe, Says No Faith in UP Government)
The five accused, all in custody, are men from a Yadav family, the same community as the one that UP Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav belongs to. The family of the girls had alleged that the local police had refused to act on their complaint the night the girls went missing.