The bodies of two Dalit girls, aged 15 and 18, were found hanging from a tree in Farrukhabad in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday morning, police said.

According to Alok Priyadarshi, the Superintendent of Police of Farrukhabad, the bodies of the two girls were found in a mango orchard in a village near Kayamganj.

He said the two girls were close friends and belonged to the same community.

Priyadarshi said both the girls disappeared from the village temple around 9 pm on Monday evening, where they had gone to watch the Sri Krishna Janmashtami tableau, and did not return home.

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The SP said the families of the two girls had searched intensively for them all night but could not find them.

He said their bodies were found hanging from the tree a few hours later on Tuesday morning.

“A mobile phone was found near the same tree while a SIM card was found in the possession of one of the girls,” the SP said.

He said the bodies had been sent for autopsy and the investigation was underway.

The SP also visited the site of the incident to take stock of the situation and spoke to family members.

Meanwhile, Farrukhabad Deputy Commissioner of Police Sanjay Kumar said initial investigations suggested the deaths were suicides.

The father of one of the girls claimed that the girls were murdered.

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