Shahjahanpur (Uttar Pradesh), Sep 19 (IANS): A young couple was found murdered, apparently in a case of honour killing by the girl's family.

Ashish Singh, 25, and Bunty, 22, were shot dead, allegedly by the woman's relatives on Friday and the latter's body was found in her home, on her bed.

Ashish was found dead near the house in Naughava Narottam village. Both were shot in the chest, from a close range.

The woman's family members were against their relationship. They had warned Bunty against talking to Ashish. The family of Ashish, which was also up against the affair, had got him married in 2019 to another girl but he left home soon after and started living in Noida.

The couple belonged to the same caste and also the same 'gotra' (lineage) which made the families oppose the relationship.

Police have registered an FIR against the woman's father, two brothers, village head and a distant relative under IPC section 302 (murder). Both the brothers are missing.

Heavy police force has been deployed in the village as both the families live in the same locality.

Ashish's father Sukhpal alleged that his son was killed by Bunty's father Krishnapal and four other relatives.

Senior Superintendent of Police S.Anand told reporters, "We have recovered an empty cartridge and a bullet from Ashish's pocket. But there was no pistol recovered near the body. We have registered an FIR on the complaint of Ashish's father. The woman's family members are claiming that her elder brothers are out of town for work for the last five days. We are probing the case from all angles."