Residents ‘beat youth to death’ for stealing car battery, 3 held

Ghaziabad: A 25-year-old youth was beaten to death by locals of Tronica City on Wednesday on suspicion of him being a car thief. Three of the residents have been arrested.
The youth, Salim was a resident of Khushal Park colony in Tronica City. On Wednesday, around 3am locals informed police that some people were stealing battery parts from an Eco car parked in Rampark area.
According to the residents, when they raised an alarm, two persons fled on a motorcycle while three tried to flee. One of the three youths fell into the septic tank of an under-construction house while others managed to flee. Locals caught hold of him and thrashed him badly before he was handed over to the police.
"Few people were trying to steal the battery from a car and one of the residents saw them. He raised the alarm and immediately four of them escaped taking advantage of darkness while people started following one of the accused. He fell in a septic tank made at the construction site," a resident told TOI.
The youth was admitted to the Community Health Center (CHC) in a critical condition from where doctors referred him to MMG hospital. “Salim succumbed while getting treatment late on Wednesday night. His body was sent for an autopsy. Based on a complaint filed by Salim’s brother, the accused have been booked under IPC Section 304 (Culpable homicide not amounting to murder)," said SP (rural) Neeraj Kumar Jadaun.
Though police suspect that Salim might have died after he swallowed mud and dirty water filled in the septic tank, "three residents have been arrested regarding the case and they are identified as Amit Panchal, Sanjay and Ajay, all residents of Rampark area. Salim and his associates also tried to steal the battery from Amit's car," said O P Singh, the SHO of Tronica City police station. “The exact reason behind his death can only be ascertained after autopsy reports,” the SHO added.
Meanwhile, Salim’s accomplices have also been booked under IPC Section 379 (theft). “We are looking into the CCTV footage of the area to identify Salim’s accomplices,” Singh said.
According to the locals, when police reached the spot, they took the deceased to the hospital in an e-rickshaw instead of a police vehicle as the deceased was found in a “dirty” state and cops were apprehensive of the man having coronavirus. “The e-rickshaw took over 20 minutes to reach the hospital and thus the treatment was delayed,” one of the residents said.
"Allegations over police are wrong. Locals took Salim to a nearby hospital and police reached the hospital directly," SP (rural) said.
Meanwhile, the deceased’s family have demanded actions against those responsible for his death.
“Salim was beaten mercilessly by locals on the road. He had gone to a nearby market on Tuesday evening and in the afternoon. The next day, we received information that he was admitted to a hospital. During this period, we have no idea what went wrong with him,” said Salim’s brother, Aleem.