Plywood shop worker chased, stabbed to death by group of men in Bareilly

Bareilly (UP), Oct 16 (PTI) A group of people chased and stabbed a 22-year-old man to death on a village road while he was returning from a local fair here, police said on Thursday.

Three people have been taken into custody in connection with the incident, which took place in Rajau Parsapur village on Wednesday night.

Barely 20 steps from the murder site, a temporary police post was set up for fair security, but no police personnel were present there at the time, according to eyewitnesses.

Police said the victim, Abhishek Yadav, was allegedly in love with a girl from another caste in the same village, which had led to tensions between the two families.

Yadav worked at a plywood workshop in the village, while his father Ramkishan, a retired Army personnel, was engaged in cattle-rearing, they said.

Family members alleged that Yadav was attacked by several men from the same village following a dispute at the fair during the 'Ravan Dahan' event. He was allegedly chased down and stabbed multiple times in the chest and abdomen.

They further claimed that Yadav had been jailed last year after the girl's family accused him of harassment, though he maintained that he was innocent.

"After his release, things have been normal between the two families. We don't know what suddenly happened last night," Yadav's father said.

"Had police been present there at the outpost, our son could have been saved," said a family member, who alleged that despite being informed, the police did not reach the spot immediately.

The family said they took the injured man to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead.

Superintendent of Police (North) Mukesh Chandra said, "A case has been registered and three named accused have been taken into custody. Further legal action is underway." He said Yadav died during treatment after suffering multiple stab wounds.

The body has been sent for post-mortem, and an inquiry will be conducted into why police personnel posted at the nearby fair outpost were absent at the time of the incident, the SP added. PTI COR KIS ARB RUK RUK