Bihar man killed in acid attack days after release from jail

Dinesh Ram was rushed to the local government hospital which was not equipped to treat him. He was referred to a hospital in Varanasi 130km away

SASARAM: A man blamed for injuries to a woman in a case of celebratory firing last month was killed in an acid attack on Monday evening in Bihar’s Rohtas district.

A police contingent has been deployed in the area to maintain peace (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Police said six unidentified men on two motorcycles threw acid on the deceased, Dinesh Ram, when he was walking in the Kargahar market area, not far from his house.

Dinesh Ram was rushed to the local government hospital which was not equipped to treat him. He was referred to a hospital in Varanasi 130km away. Ram died on the way.

Rohtas superintendent of police Vineet Kumar said the attack was linked to old enmity between two groups. The deceased was also an accused in a celebratory firing case in which a woman from the other group was injured last month. Dinesh Ram was arrested in this case and walked out on bail just last week.

People from Dinesh Ram’s community blocked the Sasaram-Chausa state highway with the body for more than four hours on Monday evening to demand the arrest of the accused, ₹25 lakh compensation and action against the police for their inaction.

Senior police and administrative officers pacified the crowd and persuaded them to open the highway.

Police said the two groups had clashed in July this year, and again on November 13, leading the police to book cases against both sides.

Kumar said the sub-divisional magistrate and sub-divisional police officer were camping in the area and the situation was under control.