“They were shooting at will, showing no regard for anyone’s life. They had come prepared that anyone in their range would be shot down. There was no discussion, no argument, just them shooting a bunch of unarmed persons,” said Bhagatram, son of Shrichand who was killed in the clash between two groups in Palwali village here on Sunday evening.
Bhagatram, who was a witness to the alleged attack that took place a few steps away from his house, said he saw the members of his family falling dead or injured one after another. And when he tried to save them, he wasn’t spared either. Bhagatram claimed he too was held by the attackers and thrashed mercilessly, showing his swollen face at the Civil Hospital where his relatives and a large number of villagers had gathered to collect the bodies.
Sudden attack
“When the matter was resolved initially after the road rage, we never thought the backlash would be this brutal. Even when they showed up in large numbers in the evening, it was difficult to guess what they had in their mind. We all presumed that they had come to talk and then suddenly the firing started,” said Bhagatram.
He added that all the victims were shot from a close range and even though they showed no resistance, the assailants were not in the mood to relent.
The police said that different family members of Sarpanch Dayawati’s husband Billu had five to six gun licences issued in their names and it was likely that one or many of these weapons were used in the attack. “We will have to wait for the ballistic test to ascertain that but this is a strong suspicion,” said a senior police officer.
“The attack was definitely pre-planned. Why else would so many people come with arms? This should be called a terrorist attack. Just look at the number of policemen deployed when you go to the village. The atmosphere of fear is palpable,” said Bhagatram.
BJP leader booed
Meanwhile, a BJP leader who is the son of a Haryana Cabinet Minister was booed at the hospital by the family of the victims and other villagers on Monday. They accused him of backing Billu and said he had no business coming to the hospital to meet the injured.