In a twist in killing of Dalit youth in Bhavnagar district of Gujarat, police said the victim was not killed for owning horse but issued related to eve-teasing.
Bhavnagar police said as per the primary investigation the reason of killing 21-year-old Dalit youth Pradip Rathod was not only ownership of horse but issues related to eve-teasing as many complaints about objectionable behaviour of the boy came to fore. Police, however, said police was in the process to find out the truth.
According to police, villagers had complaint that Rathod often used to perform stunts on the horse and his motorcycle after seeing girls passing from the streets of the village. Some villagers also said that when confronted over such behaviour, he used to fight with them.
Rathod hailed from Timbi village of Bhavnagar district and was found dead on the streets of village on late Thursday night. A day after his death, Pradip’s father Kalubhai Rathod filed complaint against people from an upper caste community. As per the complaint, the victim received threats from members of upper castes in the village for buying a horse couple of months ago. The complainant claimed that the same persons who threatened his son on the phone killed him.
Interestingly, police have also come across many complaints related to land grabbing against the complainant Kalubhai also.
Though police have interrogated few people from Timbi village, they are yet to identify and nab the culprits who killed Pradip.
Police have detained three persons, including one Natubha Darbar, and interrogated them. Four teams of cops are investigating in the sensitive case.