Unnao rape: Post-mortem cannot determine cause of witness' death, says police

The Uttar Pradesh police on Sunday said that the post-mortem report of Yunus, the key witness to the death of Unnao rape case victim's father, could not determine the cause of his death.

Speaking to ANI, Additional Director General (ADG), Law and Order, Anand Kumar said, "The post-mortem report clearly says that the cause of death could not be ascertained. Viscera (the internal organs) needs to be preserved for histopathological and chemical examinations. In addition, the post-mortem report also mentions the lack of any anti-mortem injuries on the body."

The police on Saturday exhumed the body of Yunus for post mortem. Speaking on this, the ADG said that the body of Yunus was exhumed after informing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the case.

"CBI has been kept in the loop, they have been informed of all developments. So far, we've not received a written reply from CBI but it's considered that CBI has no objections to the actions carried out by UP police," he added.

A controversy was sparked when Yunus died on August 18 and his body was buried without post-mortem. 32-year-old Yunus, who was the key witness in the attack on the rape victim's father in jail was imprisoned by local police after being allegedly framed for possessing illegal firearms.

The father of the girl, who was allegedly raped by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar and his brother Atul Singh Sengar last year, died in a hospital after allegedly being beaten up in the police custody.

Although the police denied reports of custodial death, post-mortem of the victim's father indicated that he was brought to the hospital with a damaged intestine. It also mentioned "shock and septicaemia" as the prime cause of death.