Tension prevailed in Kaushambi after three members of a Dalit family — a man, his pregnant daughter and son-in-law — were brutally killed in Sandipan Ghat area. All three were murdered while they were asleep at night and their bodies were found in cots on Friday morning.
The triple-murder caused tension among the locals and an infuriated mob set several houses and shops on fire and also pelted stones in which Pushpendra Gautam, the tehsildar of Chail, received head injuries. Six police personnel were also injured in stone pelting and arson. The house of the accused was also set on fire and the mob also blocked the road.
On receiving information about the incident, senior officials including ADG (Prayagraj zone) Bhanu Bhaskar, IG (Prayagraj range) Chandra Prakash and Divisional Commissioner Vijay Vishwas Pant, Superintendent of Police Brijesh Kumar Srivastava and Circle Officers of Chail and Sirathu immediately reached the spot and tried to take possession of the bodies, but the villagers resisted. The villagers said they would not allow the bodies to be taken away until the accused were arrested. However they were pacified.
The deceased were identified as Horilal (62), his daughter Brijkali (22) and son-in-law Shivsagar (26) who were Dalits and belonged to the Pasi community.
According to reports, Horilal of Harraipur in Sandipan Ghat police station area had a dispute with some people over a piece of land. Horilal had taken possession of the disputed land by building a hut on it. His son-in-law and daughter also lived in the hut. Horilal’s house is a short distance away from this hut. His wife and two grandchildren live there. Late Thursday evening, Horilal came to the hut with his daughter and son-in-law and they all slept there. The murders took place in the wee hours of Friday, when Horilal, Brijkali, and Shivsharan were sleeping in the hut on the disputed land.
The assailants, alleged to be Subash and his henchmen, struck and brutally killed all the three. They also opened fire on them to ensure that no one remained alive and escaped from the spot.
Soon after the villagers learnt of the sensational killing, they along with angry family members went on the rampage, setting several houses and even shops and two-wheelers on fire.
The local police along with senior officers rushed to the spot and to control the situation. They also summoned additional forces from Chail and Sirathu police stations, including three PAC battalions.
Superintendent of Police Brijesh Kumar Srivastava, who reached the spot along with his team, said that a land dispute led to the incident and added that the fire in the houses had been extinguished.
Based on a complaint by Horilal's son Subhash Kumar, a case has been registered against eight persons -- Guddu Yadav, Arvind Singh, Amit Singh, Suresh, Anuj Singh, Rajendra Singh, Ajit Singh and Amar Singh — all residents of Kaushambi district, the SP said.
The accused have been booked under Sections 147 (punishment for rioting), 148 (rioting, armed with a deadly weapon), 149 (every member of unlawful assembly guilty of offence committed in prosecution of common object), 302 (punishment for murder) of the Indian Penal Code, Criminal Law Amendment Act and Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, he added.
Two persons have been arrested and eight teams have been formed to nab the remaining six accused, the SP disclosed.
Following the murder a heavy police force and PAC personnel have been deployed in the village.
The SP said that the situation now was completely under control.