Post News Network
Jeypore, April 9: In a gruesome incident, self-styled vigilantes in Balia and nearby villages under Sadar police limits in Koraput district have beaten to death four unidentified persons who were travelling in a SUV with Madhya Pradesh registration, late at night Wednesday.
The incident took place near a bridge on River Sati amid rumours in the village that gangs were abducting youths and children for removal of kidneys and eyes to be sold in other states. Residents in the area had formed groups for night patrols, that were guarding the village and nearby areas in the past over a week.
First, Wednesday night, they noticed a Commander jeep suspiciously stationed in an area, and detained its occupants. Meanwhile, a youth of Nuaput village informed villagers that a SUV had been waylaying him and following him from Jeypore town. The villagers tried to stop the SUV but the vehicle sped away on a village road.
After a while, the occupants of the SUV abandoned the vehicle near River Sati and tried to run away but were chased and caught by some other villagers who got information from other villages chasing the SUV. The angry mob assaulted them with lathis, suspecting them to be “abductors” from other states, as the four were speaking in Hindi. All the four died on the spot.
People also stopped a bike which was following the SUV. The rider of the bike fled the scene while the villagers beat up Bhagawan of Irrigation Colony who was riding pillion, and they also burnt the bike. The villagers later handed over five persons who were in the jeep to police. Police said Bhagaban Nayak, 23, a resident of Irrigation Colony, who was riding a bike, was critically injured after being thrashed by the villagers. He was undergoing treatment in a local sub-divisional hospital.
The villagers torched the SUV, the commander jeep and a bike.
On being alerted, police reached the spot and sent four unidentified bodies to the district headquarter hospital for post-mortem. As many as 45 people of four villages have been detained. The police also seized about a quintal of ‘ganja’ from the spot where the commander jeep was torched – in Palkaput-Nuaput area.
Superintendent of police Charansingh Meena, ASP V Raghunath Rao, SDPO Rajendra Senapati and other officials started an investigation into the incident. While a forensic team and a dog squad have been pressed into service, five police teams have been formed to probe the matter.
