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1 killed, 3 hurt during eviction
AN IRATE mob fought a pitched battle with police after an attempt to evict tenants resulted into the death of a man and serious injuries to three others in Gumti locality here on Tuesday. Running amok, the mob damaged several vehicles, including a police jeep, and also pelted stones on policemen. The violence continued for two hours. A constable and several protesters were injured in the stone-pelting and subsequent cane-charge. Fazalgunj police said the troublemakers had been identified and a case was being registered against them .
AN IRATE mob fought a pitched battle with police after an attempt to evict tenants resulted into the death of a man and serious injuries to three others in Gumti locality here on Tuesday.
Running amok, the mob damaged several vehicles, including a police jeep, and also pelted stones on policemen. The violence continued for two hours. A constable and several protesters were injured in the stone-pelting and subsequent cane-charge.
Fazalgunj police said the troublemakers had been identified and a case was being registered against them.
According to reports, Gumti Vyapar Mandal president Raje Gupta and his brother Rajeev Gupta had purchased some houses in Phool Singh compound where 27 families reside. The Guptas went there to evict a tenant, Suresh Sahu, living on the ground floor.
The idea was to damage the ceiling in order to harass Sahu, but it boomeranged when the ceiling caved in. Suresh, who was buried under the debris, died on the spot. Three others, including Chotu andUma Devi, suffered grievous injuries in the process.
While the Guptas and their labourers fled the scene, locals exerted pressure on the Fazalgunj police to lodge an FIR. But the police, apparently under pressure of the Vyapar Mandal, treated the case as an accident and registered it under irrelevant sections.
In the morning, inhabitants of the compound and locals, galvanised by Gupta’s political adversary Jasveer Diwan and Kailash Shukla, blocked Bamba road, demanding arrest of the Guptas and adequate compensation for Sahu’s family.
The police dilly-dallied and soon they came under heavy attack from the people.
The mob first stoned the cops who retaliated with cane charge but couldn’t match the vehemence of the mob.
Irate people disrupted traffic and damaged several vehicles. A police jeep and two cars owned by the Guptas were damaged. Constable Ram Kishore Yadav was also injured in the attack.
Although the mob was prevented from entering the Guptas’ house, it did manage to break some windowpanes. Dinesh Pandey, who had registered the complaint, said police apathy led to the mob violence.
However, police denied the charge, saying Rajeev Gupta had been arrested andadded that a few people had incited the violence to settle old scores.
