Days after Dalit man lynched in Rae Bareli, five policemen suspended

Circle officer Dalmau Girjashankar Tripathi confirmed that five accused Vaibhav Singh, Vipin Kumar, Vijay Maurya, Suresh Kumar, and Sahdev were arrested and sent to jail.

Days after a Dalit man was mistaken for a thief and lynched in Rae Bareli district’s Unchahar area, five police personnel, including two sub-inspectors, were suspended on Monday in connection with the incident.

Police lodged an FIR against two named and several unidentified persons under sections of culpable homicide. (REPRESENTATIVE IMAGE)

While station house officer (SHO) Sanjay Kumar was removed from his post and attached to the crime branch, SP Yashveer Singh suspended sub-inspectors Kamal Singh Yadav, Prem Singh and constables Pradeep, Jai Singh Yadav and Abhishek. Five accused have been arrested even as police are still identifying other suspects involved in the brutal assault.

The victim, Hariom, a resident of Pure Turab Ali village in Fatehpur district, was on way to his in-laws’ house in Nai Basti, Unchahar, on Wednesday night when some locals stopped him near Daadepur at Ishwardaspur village along the Dalmau-Unchahar road. Mistaking him for a thief, they tied him to an electric pole near Ishwardaspur railway station and thrashed him with belts and sticks, leading to his death. Videos of the assault later went viral on social media, prompting police action.

Following a complaint from Hariom’s father, Gangadeen, police lodged an FIR against two named and several unidentified persons under sections of culpable homicide.

Circle officer Dalmau Girjashankar Tripathi confirmed that five accused Vaibhav Singh, Vipin Kumar, Vijay Maurya, Suresh Kumar, and Sahdev were arrested and sent to jail.

Investigations revealed that the main accused, Vaibhav Singh, allegedly pressed his foot on the victim’s neck during the assault and later burned his slippers to destroy evidence. The beating reportedly began with Vaibhav using Hariom’s own belt.