KGMU doc arrest: Cops trace qazi, friend witness to his earlier nikah | Lucknow News
Lucknow: A day after the arrest of King George’s Medical University (KGMU) junior resident, Rameezuddin alias Rameez (31), accused of rape, forced abortion and unlawful religious conversion, police on Saturday traced two key individuals allegedly linked to an earlier coercive nikah the doctor had with an Agra-based woman.Police identified the accused doctor’s friend Shariq Khan, who allegedly acted as a witness to the nikah, and the qazi Saiyyad Zahid Hasan, who is suspected to have solemnised the marriage. Investigators claim the nikah was conducted under pressure and coercion, without the woman’s free consent.
According to police sources, call detail records, location data and statements recorded during interrogation of the arrested doctor led investigators to Pilibhit, where the alleged nikah with the Agra-based woman is believed to have taken place. Teams are now searching for both Shariq Khan and the qazi to establish their exact roles and whether they were aware of the alleged coercion and unlawful conversion. The accused, a junior resident at KGMU, was arrested on Friday by a joint team of the West Lucknow surveillance unit and Chowk police near the City Station after remaining absconding since Dec 23. A reward of Rs50,000 was announced for information leading to his arrest.Rameez, a resident of Pilibhit with temporary addresses in Lucknow and Uttarakhand, is accused of repeatedly raping the junior woman doctor on the false promise of marriage, forcing her to undergo an abortion without consent, and coercing her to convert. He is also accused of coercing a woman from Agra into marriage and conversion. However, Rameez claimed after his arrest that he was framed. Rameez’s parents—father Salimuddin (70) and mother Khateja (67)—were also arrested on January 5 and sent to judicial custody.DCP Vishwajeet Srivastava said the police are committed to ensuring a watertight investigation and will move the court to seek a fast-track trial in the case, given the gravity of the allegations.“All evidence—documentary, technical and testimonial—is being collected so that there is no loophole in the investigation. We will strongly pursue a fast-track hearing to ensure timely justice to victim,” the DCP said.
