A 34-year-old Dalit man was allegedly abducted, held in captivity for 24 hours and brutally murdered by his employer on suspicion of stealing a gold chain in Uttar Pradesh’s Fatehpur district, police have said.
Additional superintendent of police Vinod Kumar said Shakti Singh, a brick kiln owner, has been arrested and charged with killing Sohanlal Raidass in Bindaur village of Jaffargunj police area.
Station house officer of Jaffargunj police station Arvind Kumar said Singh lost his gold chain on Tuesday and suspected Raidass of stealing it.
Raidass’ family members said Singh and a few other men forcibly took him away from his house on Tuesday afternoon. His son Ashish told the police that when he inquired about his father Singh’s musclemen turned him away.
Tension erupted in Bindaur after Raidass’ family discovered him bound and gagged near Singh’s tubewell on Wednesday afternoon.
“We learnt about him lying near Singh’s tubewell. We rushed there and found him,” Ashish said.
He called the emergency Dial 100 number and three policemen came to the village to investigate the matter. Singh, who went to jail in 2011 for killing his wife, attacked the three policemen trying to arrest him.
{{/usCountry}}He called the emergency Dial 100 number and three policemen came to the village to investigate the matter. Singh, who went to jail in 2011 for killing his wife, attacked the three policemen trying to arrest him.
{{/usCountry}}The autopsy report has revealed Raidass’ hands were broken and his body had burn marks suggesting torture.
Dalits are among the most marginalised groups in the country, where discrimination on the basis of caste is outlawed but remains widespread.
A Dalit man was beaten to death at Sathi village of Banda district for allegedly stealing a watch in March this year.
And last year, at least two Dalit men were killed in clashes between members of upper caste Thakurs and their community in the sensitive Saharanpur district of the state.