Shop owner thrashed in Vaishali by men in SUVs; two arrested

The victim said the suspects beat him up severely with rods and sticks, and the people who tried to intervene were also beaten up

A 34-year-old shop owner from Vaishali was allegedly thrashed by unidentified men who arrived in SUVs late Monday night following a road rage incident, senior police officers said on Thursday, adding that two of the alleged assaulters were identified and arrested on Thursday on a complaint given by the victim.

Police said they have identified and arrested two people and the others too will be identified as teams have been formed to trace them. (HT Photo)

Police said the victim, Rahul Kumar Waranval, operates a fast food shop in Vaishali and around 10.20pm on May 27, he was purchasing mangoes from a fruit vendor nearby when some men arrived in a Fortuner SUV and asked him to move aside. But that somehow led to an argument and the men in the SUV allegedly abused Waranval.

“I still spoke to them politely but one of them thrashed me. I ran to call the police and in the meantime they called up some more of their accomplices. They beat me up severely with rods and sticks. People who tried to intervene were also beaten up and they suffered injuries,” Waranval said in the FIR.

Based on his complaint, the police registered an FIR under Indian Penal Code sections 147 (rioting), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 504 (intentional insult) at Kaushambi police station.

“I have suffered multiple internal injuries as a result of the attack. They were seven to eight men who had arrived in a Fortuner and Creta and seemed to be in an inebriated state. Later, I came to know that they were property dealers in the area. I do not know the reason why they attacked me,” Waranval said on Thursday.

The police on Thursday said that they arrested two suspects.

“A video of the incident was shared on social media. We have registered an FIR on a complaint given by Waranval against unidentified persons. We have identified and arrested two persons and the others too will be identified. We have formed teams to trace them,” said Swatantra Kumar Singh, assistant commissioner of police, Indirapuram.

Officers from Kaushambi police station identified the two arrested suspects as Arjun Mehra, 30, and Atul Kumar, 32.

“It was a case of road rage and the victim and suspects were not known to each other. While the victim man was purchasing mangoes from a roadside vendor, the men in SUV asked him to move. This started an argument that ended in violence,” said Sarvesh Kumar, station house officer, Kaushambi police station.