On Wednesday night, five members of the Dohre family were gunned down, while they were fast asleep in their house in the village under Ikdil police station here.

Going a step ahead of Mayawati, Rahul on Saturday morning had a closed room talk with Tripti, a minor girl who is one of the three children who survived the attack on the family. Tripti’s uncle Sarvesh Kumar and aunt Pawan Kumari were also present on the occasion.

Though Rahul did not talk to the media, the aggrieved family told The Sunday Express that the Congress leader had promised financial assistance of Rs 2.50 lakh and educational facilities, including admission to a hostel, to them. After spending over an hour with the family, Rahul also had a talk with village headman Asharam in private. It is believed that he enquired about the incident and law and order situation in the area. Rahul, then, stopped at potato fields in the village and had his breakfast, which consisted of bread, with the local villagers.

Elated over Rahul’s visit, hundreds of villagers gathered around him and said they had great expectation from the young Congress leader. They said that he would do something not only for the distressed family, but for the entire village.

Meanwhile, SSP Etawah S R S Aditya informed that five persons, including Pushpa, wife of Dohre family’s neighbour Homa Singh, Raghunath, Atar Singh, Mohar Singh and Raju had been arrested in connection with the attack.