Chitrakoot: 28-year-old migrant beaten to death; seven booked, no arrests yet

Four persons of the same village were detained for questioning but no arrests have been made yet, police said, adding that both the victim and the accused belong to the Dalit community.

SHO (Mau) Subhash Chandra Chaurasia said Gautam, who worked at a diamond workshop in Mumbai, had returned to the village two months ago during the lockdown.

He added that Gautam’s family members said in their complaint that on Sunday, he had stepped out of the house to visit a nearby temple.

The family claimed that on the way, the suspects accosted him and beat him up with sticks and iron rods. On hearing his cries for help, residents reached the spot. The suspects had fled by then. Gautam was taken to a hospital where doctors declared him dead on arrival.

Circle Officer, Mau, Vijendra Dwivedi, said the victim’s family told police that they were not on good terms with their relatives.

The family claimed that they suspect that Gautam was killed to avenge a 2015 clash in which people from both sides were injured. A probe was on, Dwivedi added.

Earlier, protesting residents blocked a portion of the Jhansi-Mirzapur Highway, demanding arrest of the culprits. The protest was called off after police assured them of swift action in the case.