LUCKNOW: A day after two minor siblings were hacked to death by their cousin in Ashirwad Dham Colony of Hathras, the district police on Friday nabbed the accused and his accomplice after a gunfight.
The police sources claimed that accused Vikas, 32, and his accomplice Lalu Pal, 30 were rounded up by using electronic surveillance. Both the culprits were traced in an area near the Pipri region in Hathras.
As per the police sources, the murder was allegedly carried out in the wake of a family feud over a piece of land.
When the police team approached the accused, they allegedly opened fire on cops at around 1 am, prompting a retaliation by the police personnel.
Bullets fired by the police team hit the accused in the leg. Following the incident, two were arrested. They were taken to a local hospital for treatment.
According to Hathras SP, CN Sinha, the accused revealed that they were engaged by one Sonelal Gautam, the nephew of the injured couple to eliminate the entire family promising them a payment of Rs 2 lakh. Gautam is a resident of Fatehpur.
However, Virangana alias Gauri (the victims' mother) resisted the murder attempt by the culprits raising an alarm for help.
The SP said that hearing the screams of Gauri, neighbours rushed to help the family leading the culprits to flee the spot.
“The murder weapon -- a knife, two country-made pistols, a few cartridges along with and blood-soaked clothes – have been recovered from the accused,” said the SP.
During their grilling, the two assailants admitted to have received Rs 20,000 in advance from Sonelal Gautam who is a college lecturer.
The victims of Thursday’s attack were identified as Shrishti, 12, and Vidhi, 6.
Their father Chote Lal Gautam, 45, and mother Virangana alias Gauri, 41 who were grievously injured during the incident are going through treatment in critical condition at a hospital in Aligarh.