Ludhiana: 25-year-old beaten to death, brother of his ‘female friend’ arrested

Key accused says deceased came from Gujarat to meet his sister; his aide has been arrested; two more persons, said to have assaulted the deceased, are absconding, say police

The police have arrested two persons for “thrashing a 25-year-old man to death” for allegedly having an affair with the sister of one of the accused. While the accused claimed that the deceased had been stalking his sister, the kin of the victim claimed that he had an affair with the woman. They also alleged a premeditated plot by the girl’s family to lure and kill him.

The Tibba police have registered an FIR under Sections 103 (murder) and 3 (5) (common intention) of the BNS.

The victim, Sachin Tiwari, hailed from Sonipat, Haryana. He was thrashed on December 27 and succumbed on Saturday, the police. He had been living and working in Gujarat for the past few months. The arrested persons have been identified as Anuj Yadav, a resident of Tajpur village, and Baljeet Singh, a resident of Puneet Nagar, while two of their aides are on the run.

According to complainant Rakesh Tiwari, victim’s uncle, Sachin had been in a relationship with Anuj’s sister two years ago when she was reportedly a minor. The matter had previously been reported to the police, leading to a compromise wherein both families agreed that Sachin and the girl would cease their contact. Following the agreement, Sachin’s family relocated him to Gujarat to distance him from the situation.

“Sachin had been working in Gujarat for several months and his family was considering to get him married somewhere else. Somehow, the girl’s family learned about it. We believe they called him to Ludhiana under false pretenses only to kill him on December 27. Sachin left for Ludhiana without informing us,” said Rakesh Tiwari.

Assistant commissioner of police (ACP, East) Sumit Sood said the incident came to light when the police received information from the civil hospital about Sachin, who had been referred to the PGIMER, Chandigarh, with severe injuries. He later succumbed to his wounds.

Preliminary investigations revealed that Anuj Yadav, accompanied by Baljeet Singh and two other accomplices, assaulted Sachin in Puneet Nagar using sharp-edged weapons. “According to Anuj, despite warnings, Sachin continued trying to contact his sister. Anuj claims he intended only to threaten Sachin, not to kill him,” said the ACP.

An eyewitness reported that during the attack, Sachin tried to escape by seeking refuge inside a house, but the assailants dragged him out and continued the assault until he was gravely injured.

The Tibba police have registered an FIR under Sections 103 (murder) and 3 (5) (common intention) of the BNS. The ACP added that a hunt is on for the arrest of the rest of the accused.