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House of accused who killed Madhya Pradesh Dalit family to be demolished
The district administration issued the order, saying the house of the main accused in the murder, Jagdish Patel, was found to be an illegal construction on government land in Devran village.
Authorities in Madhya Pradesh’s Damoh district on Wednesday issued an order to demolish the house of a 48-year-old man, a day after he and six others allegedly shot dead three members of a Dalit family over molestation charges, officials said.
The district administration issued the order, saying the house of the main accused in the murder, Jagdish Patel, was found to be an illegal construction on government land in Devran village.
While Patel and three others have been arrested for the murder, a search is on to nab the remaining accused.
In a notice to Patel on Wednesday, the tehsildar said 0.04 hectare of government land was encroached upon by him and sought a clarification on the matter by end of the day.
“In case of no reply or unsatisfied reply, the encroachment will be cleared by the administration,” the notice, a copy of which HT has seen, said.
District collector S Krishna Chaitanya said: “The house of Jagdish Patel was constructed by encroaching upon government land. A notice has been served to him and the demolition process will be initiated on Thursday.
HT tried to reach out to Patel’s family for a comment on the notice but could not get one immediately.
On Tuesday morning, Patel and six others reportedly entered the house of one Manak Ahirwar (30) in the same village and opened fire at him and his family members, according to Damoh superintendent of police (SP) D R Teniwar.
The SP said there was a dispute between Ahirwar’s and Patel’s family after the latter’s wife accused Manak of stalking her.
While Ahirwar and his parents – Ghamandi Ahirwar (60) and Rajpyari Ahirwar (58) – died on the spot, his brothers – Mahesh Ahirwar and Bablu – sustained injuries in the firing and are undergoing treatment at a hospital.
“The two families had a fight over the issue on Monday. Jagdish Patel’s wife had accused Manak Ahiwar of stalking her,” Teniwar said.
Police have registered a case against the accused under section 302 (murder) of Indian Penal Code and provisions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities.
Damoh inspector general of police Anurag Kumar said Patel and three others have been arrested. “Three accused are absconding but we are trying to nab them,” he said.
Tension erupted in the village after the firing, prompting police to deploy forces in the area.
“The situation in the village is under control. There is heavy deployment of police in the village,” Chaitanya said.
Transport minister Govind Singh Rajput met the family members of the deceased. “The state government will bear the educational expenses of the children of the deceased. They will be provided financial aid,” he said.
It is not for the first time that authorities in the state have decided to demolish the house of an accused named in a criminal case.
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