Dalit man beaten to death in Madhya Pradesh; Sarpanch, kin held

Four accused on the run; police say altercation over disputed borewell ended in violence

A 30-year-old Dalit man has been beaten to death allegedly by a village panchayat head and his family members in Madhya Pradesh’s Shivpuri district, the police said on Wednesday.

Four accused, including the village sarpanch, have been arrested, while four others are absconding. 

According to the police, the incident took place on Tuesday around 4 p.m. in Indergarh village under the Subhashpura police station limits. Village sarpanch Padam Singh Dhakad and some of his family members allegedly attacked Narad Jatav following altercation over a disputed borewell.

Also read: Dalit boy tied up and beaten for plucking a pomegranate

Mr. Narad was a resident of Gwalior district and had come to visit his maternal uncle, Vidhya Jatav, in Indergarh.

Shivpuri Superintendent of Police, Aman Singh Rathore, told The Hindu that four accused, including prime accused Padam Singh Dhakad, were arrested on Wednesday. 

“We have declared rewards on the four absconding persons and teams are looking for them,” he said. 

An FIR under murder charges and relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, was filed against eight people. The other accused are Mr. Padam Singh’s brother Moharpal Dhakad, son Ankesh Dhakad, and other family members.

Mr. Rathore said a dispute had been going on between the Jatav and Dhakad families over the water source. The victim’s family members claim that they had also invested money in the borewell. “The two sides had a verbal arrangement in place for using the water for fields but on Tuesday an argument broke out between them that led to the violence,” the SP said. 

A purported video of the incident doing rounds on the Internet showed a group of men beating up Mr. Narad Jatav with sticks and batons with some others, including women, looking on. 

After the incident, the victim was taken to the Shivpuri medical college but he could not be saved, the police said. 

None held, says victim’s father

His body was cremated on Wednesday evening. After the cremation, Vishnu Jatav, father of the deceased, said his son was brutally beaten up by the accused. “I reached here after he had been killed. He had only gone to visit his uncle and I don’t know what the dispute was but the Dhakads beat him to death,” he said.

Mr. Vishnu also alleged that the local police did not take any action initially.

“My relatives had gone to the police but they did not listen to them and asked them to leave. The police is now saying that it has arrested the (four) accused but nobody has been held. They are still absconding,” he added.

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav expressed grief over the incident and announced a financial assistance of ₹4 lakh to the victim’s family.

“I have directed the Minister in charge Pradyuman Singh Tomar to meet the victim’s family, who will also give the cheque for the relief amount to the victim’s family. There is no place for such cruelty and anarchy in Madhya Pradesh. Our government is serious about such anarchists,” Mr. Yadav said in an X post.

Mr. Rathore also said that the police was also verifying if all the eight accused were present at the site of the incident.

“We have got information that some names mentioned in the complaint may not have been present at the spot. We are verifying that,” he said.

Also read: Dalit couple beaten, made to wear garlands of shoes in Madhya Pradesh

Mafia flourishing: Congress

The Congress slammed the State’s BJP government over atrocities against Dalits and criticised the Chief Minister over his ongoing foreign visit. 

“Look at the grave irony of BJP! On one hand, the whole country is celebrating Constitution Day, people are talking about the ideas of Baba Saheb Ambedkar, and on the other hand, under the BJP rule, my Dalit brother was beaten to death with sticks. Today, the BJP rule has become synonymous with exploitation and atrocities on Dalits. Even in the 21st century, atrocities are being perpetrated on my Dalit families,” Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari said on X.

“The State’s Home Minister (Mr. Yadav holds the Home portfolio) is holidaying abroad, and the mafia flourishing under his protection here is writing new stories of atrocities on Dalit families every day,” he added. 

Congress MLA from Shivpuri’s Pohri Kailash Kushwaha led a protest in the area to demand that Mr. Padam Singh be removed as the village panchayat head. He alleged that the sarpanch’s family had illegally occupied government land in the village and sought removal of the encroachment. 

Mr. Kushwaha also accused local police of negligence and demanded suspension of officers responsible. 

Published - November 27, 2024 08:59 pm IST