A mukhiya’s husband and a teacher beat up two tribal youths mercilessly after tying them up and dragging them for over 50 metre on August 15 on the suspicion of theft in a village in Chatra, but police began investigations only on Thursday after a video, purportedly of the brutal assault went, viral.
Chatra SP Rishab Jha said the two, one aged 20 and the other 23, were now undergoing treatment at Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi. He admitted that an FIR had been lodged by the 23-year-old’s wife on the same day, claiming that the allegations that they were stealing mobile phones were false.
Jha said three persons were arrested on Thursday for the assault on the youths, but that the teacher, Sushil Singh, and Sanjay Dangi, who is the husband of Kobana village mukhiya Sarita Devi, were absconding.
Police maintain that the two were part of a group of five who were caught trying to steal mobile phones. Three escaped, but the two were caught by local people who just stood by as Singh and Dangi beat them up.
“No one will be spared. The teacher, the mukhiya and her husband have fled, but we will nab them soon,” said Jha after chief minister Hemant Soren tweeted to condemn the attack on the tribal youths and asked the Chatra police to conduct a thorough investigation and arrest the culprits. He did not explain why police did not launch an investigation after the FIR was lodged.
Local sources said the incident occurred at Kobana village in Hunterganj block of Chatra district. The two tribal youths were caught soon after the flag hoisting ceremony at the block.
According to the video, the duo was tied up and mercilessly beaten with sticks in the presence of a large number of people. Nobody even tried to stop Singh and Dangi.
Local police are understood to have brought the two tribal youths to a community health centre at Huntergunj. But upon seeing that the two had sustained serious injuries, they referred them to Chatra Sadar Hospital, 45km away. At sadar hospital, the two received treatment. But since there was no improvement in their condition, doctors referred them to RIMS on Wednesday.
