Protests over murder holds up highway traffic

Allahabad: Traffic on Lucknow-Allahabad highway was held up for hours after family members of a murdered youth blocked the road by protesting along with the body to seek justice, under Nawabganj police circle on Monday morning.
As per reports, a 27-year-old youth Ved Prakash Pandey was found murdered under mysterious circumstances near Gopalganj railway station on Monday morning. A resident of Baanpur, the victim had been preparing for competitive examinations. Pandey’s family members said he had left home early morning after receiving a call on his phone.
His family members only got to know about his death, when word spread about a body being found near Gopalganj railway station.
Police said the youth had been shot at point blank range and a case was registered under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code against unidentified persons.
SP (crime) Ashutosh Mishra said that the youth’s motorcycle was found near the body. “We have formed two police teams to crack the case,” he added.
Police said his family did not know much about Pandey’s friend circle and he had left home in the morning without informing any of them.
Angry over the sudden death of the youth, Pandey’s family members sat down on the road with his body and staged a demonstration to seek immediate arrest of his killers.
The demonstration led to vehicles queuing up on both sides of the road.
Pandey’s family agreed to end their protest only after senior police officials assured them that they would work out the case within 48 hours. Meanwhile, commuters travelling on the highway were annoyed for being stuck in a traffic snarl.
“I had to reach Lucknow early, but I wasted over two hours being stuck in the jam. Before senior police official convinced the family to call of the protest, there was no traffic personnel present at the spot to regulate vehicular movement,” said Pankaj one of the commuters who was caught in the snarl.