Three government doctors were on Tuesday charged of destroying evidence through manipulation of post-mortem report in the case of rape and strangulation of 14-year-old Sonam inside the premises of Nighasan police station in Lakhimpur-Kheri district, about 170 km from Lucknow, on June 10.
An order was issued by Lakhimpur-Kheri Chief Judicial Magistrate RK Shukla, who directed the local police to book each of the three doctors who carried out post-mortem on the minor girl and termed "suicide" as the cause of death.
Earlier an application was moved by local lawyer Dharmendra Suryavanshi, who sought criminal action against the three doctors for destroying vital evidence.
The doctors AK Agrawal, AK Sharma and SP Singh were posted at the Lakhimpur-Kheri district hospital.
It was only following much media criticism and the family's demand that a second autopsy was carried out by another team of five doctors who were rushed from Lucknow. They confirmed it as a case of "strangulation".
As many as 11 policemen posted at the police station and three doctors who conducted the first autopsy were suspended.
Subsequently, the case was handed over to the crime branch of the Crime Investigation Department, whose sleuths unearthed the involvement of yet another cop, who was posted as gunner of the local deputy superintendent of police.
The sensational case acquired much significance that it even attracted the attention of Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, who flew down from Delhi to visit the victim's parents as well as the police station where the heinous crime took place.
