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Journalism of Courage
In focus
The police on Thursday formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the incident in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district where a 21-year-old man was allegedly paraded and beaten to death by a group of men in on August 11.
Eight accused have been arrested so far for the alleged murder of Suleman Rahim Khan Pathan. Police said four suspects reside within 300 metres in Chhota Betawat, the same village where Khan resided.
Of the eight arrested so far, four were arrested on August 12 and remanded in police custody until August 18.
Police identified them as Abhishek Rajkumar Rajput (22), Ghanshyam alias Suraj Bihari Lal Sharma (25), Deepak Bajirao (20) and Ranjat alias Ranjit Ramkrishna Matade (48).
According to a police officer, Abhishek Rajput is unemployed and has studied till Class 10. His father died a few years ago and mother is a homemaker. He is the only son and does farming in their land. Suraj Sharma studied till HSC and was doing odd jobs. His father was a state transport conductor who died two years ago. His mother is a homemaker and his elder sister is married.
Deepak Ghesade completed HSC and his father is a blacksmith who runs a small shop in the village where he was helping along with his mother. He was also preparing for a government exam. Another accused, Ranjit Matade, 48, is a driver by profession and owns a car, which he used to provide transport service between the village and Jamner taluka. He has two children and his son also helps him in his business, while his daughter is studying in junior college, said the officer.
Other four accused identified as Aditya Devade, Krishna Teli, Shejwal Teli and Rishikesh Teli, all in their mid-20s, were arrested on August 13 from different parts of Jalgaon. They were produced in the court Thursday and remanded in police custody till August 18.
Police have recorded around 15 witness statements, including the family members of the deceased, as well as manager and employees of the cafe where the accused started assaulting the victim. Police are examining the CCTV footage of the incident to check if others were involved in the assault. The mobile phones of the deceased and accused are being investigated for technical evidence, said an officer.
According to police, Suleman Rahim Khan Pathan left home in Chhota Betawat village for Jamner, 15 km away, on August 11 morning to fill an online form for police recruitment.
Around 3.30 pm, when Khan was sitting in a cafe with a girl, 8-10 people came in, started assaulting him and dragged him out. Khan was taken to his village where he was paraded and assaulted repeatedly, finally with a stick near his residence, the officer said.
“When Khan’s parents and sister tried to rescue him, the men assaulted them as well,” the officer said.
Khan lost consciousness because of the beating. “The accused left him outside his house, believing he was dead,” the officer said.
Village residents rushed Khan to the hospital where he was declared dead.
