A priest and two disciples have been accused of gang-raping and murdering a 50-year-old woman.
The three men have been arrested in connection to the horrific findings in India, Uttar Pradesh.
The woman’s body was laid out in a cot in her village, according to images and videos.
Her body was covered in a blood soaked yellow sheet, her leg and foot seemed to be broken in the images.
The woman’s son spoke out about the devastating incident, he told local media: “They brought her on their own in a vehicle. She was dead when they left her here. The occultist and others dropped her at the door and left quickly.
(Image: NDTV)
“On Sunday, she had left home around 5pm and the men brought her back around 11:30 pm.”
According to an autopsy report the woman’s suffered injuries to her private parts, reports NDTV.
“The post mortem reports show minor injuries to private parts, there are tears and she has a fracture on one of her legs. There was excessive bleeding and the bleeding led to shock and that led to the patient’s death. Prima facie we found evidence of rape,” Dr Yashpal Singh, Chief Medical Officer, Budaun, said.
In addition to the arrests, Budaun police chief Sankalp Sharma said disciplinary action is also being taken against local policemen for negligence.
“The preliminary inquiry has found that the local police station in charge was negligent in handling the case. I have ordered his suspension,” Mr Sharma said.
However in a video of the priest, he claims the woman fell into a well near a place of worship and that he and others tried to rescue her.
He claimed: “I brought two men to rescue her. We took her out of the well. She was alive. When we dropped her home, she was alive.”
An investigation has begun, National Commission for Women (NCW) chief Rekha Sharma said: “We have taken cognisance of the matter. One NCW member is going to the spot to investigate the matter to meet the family and the police and take an exact stock of the situation,” according to news agency ANI.
