Gurugram man assaulted by neighbours after releasing rat outside home

Police said the Sector 40 resident was allegedly beaten with a blunt object after a rat ran toward a neighbour’s house, sparking a violent late-night fight.

A man was allegedly assaulted by his neighbours for releasing a rat outside his house in Gurugram’s Urban Estate locality (Sector 40) late on Tuesday night, police said on Sunday.

An FIR under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was filed after CCTV showed the Gurugram resident being attacked by his neighbour and two sons over a released rodent. (File photo)

According to police, the incident took place around 11pm when the rodent, which had been caught in a mousetrap, ran towards the neighbour’s house after being released. The act allegedly enraged the neighbour and led to a violent confrontation.

A senior police officer at Sector 40 police station said the victim, identified as Rakesh Chutani, a business owner and resident of Urban Estate, filed a complaint on Wednesday alleging that he was attacked by his neighbour and the neighbour’s two sons. “The man identified as Rakesh Chutani, a business owner and resident of Urban Estate, submitted a complaint to us on Wednesday, alleging that he was assaulted using a blunt object by his neighbours,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.

Officials, citing the complaint, said the accused neighbour, BK Bhardwaj, 65, became agitated after seeing Chutani release the rodent on the road. “An argument broke out between the duo, prompting the neighbour’s sons to intervene,” the officer added.

According to the complaint, an emergency response vehicle (ERV) was called to the spot when the altercation turned violent. “The officers responding to the brawl later separated the man from his neighbour’s sons, who were allegedly trying to choke him,” the officer said, quoting from the complaint.

Chutani was taken to Civil Hospital, Sector 10A, where doctors prepared a medico-legal certificate (MLC) after noting that he had sustained serious injuries to his spine and neck during the incident, according to officials.

“An FIR was registered under Section 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 351(2) (criminal intimidation), 126(2) (wrongful restraint) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at Sector 40 police station,” said Sandeep Turan, public relations officer of Gurugram Police. Officials said an investigation is underway and further action will be taken based on its findings. Police have also seized CCTV footage of the incident recorded outside the victim’s house on Saturday.