Head constable battered to death, four arrested: police

Four persons including a woman were arrested Sunday for allegedly battering a police head constable to death in Rajsamand district. Head Constable Abdul Ghani, who was posted at Bhim police station, had gone to a village on Saturday to probe into a case of trespass allegedly committed by one of the villagers.

When Ghani was returning to the police station from the village on a motorcycle, he was attacked by seven to eight persons, including accused Nageshwar and his family members, with sticks and iron rods, the police said. Ghani died during treatment at a hospital in Bhim on Saturday evening.

“Before succumbing to his injuries, the head constable gave a statement to the SHO that he was attacked by Nageshwar and his friends. They also looted his files, purse, and other belongings. Nageshwar's mother Naina Devi was also present and was provoking them,” the police said. Earlier a case of trespass had been lodged against Nageshwar by his neighbor and the head constable had gone to the village to probe into the allegations.

“Naina Devi, Nageshwar and his friends Laxman and Mukesh were detained on Sunday morning and were placed under arrest in the evening after interrogation,” Rajsamand's Additional Superintendent of Police Rajesh Kumar Gupta said. The body of the slain policeman was handed over to family members after a postmortem on Sunday.

SP Bhuvan Bhushan and other policemen paid tributes to the slain police constable at Rajsamand's police lines. Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot too expressed grief over the policeman's death and asked senior police officials to probe the case thoroughly and impartially.

“It is very sad to learn about the death of Head Constable Abdul Ghani. My heart goes out to his family members and I want to assure them that justice will be done… have given direction to the officials for thorough and impartial enquiry,” Gehlot tweeted. Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot too expressed grief and condemned the incident.

He also said directions have been issued for a speedy investigation into the case and stern action against the accused. The police, meanwhile, also clarified that it was not a case of mob lynching and the victim policeman was attacked under a conspiracy.

Some messages were circulated on social media that the policeman was lynched by mob but the police denied it saying that a group of seven to eight miscreants under conspiracy had attacked the head constable and it was not a case of mob lynching.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)