Farmer murders 4-yr-old as kids run into his field

Ludhiana: Irked over children damaging his crop while playing, a farmer murdered a four-year-old boy by drowning him in a sewerage pit at Balibeg Basti of Machhiwara on Wednesday night. The victim entered the field while chasing a kite with a few other children. The farmer tried to catch the children, who got away. The victim, Anshu Sahni, was the youngest and he could not escape.
Machhiwara Police arrested the accused, Babu Lal and lodged a murder case against him. Babu Lal is a migrant who purchased some agricultural land in the village and used to do farming.
Raju Sahni, the victim’s father said that a few children used to play around Babu Lal’s fields. They used to enter the fields while chasing kites. Babu Lal objected to this saying that it damaged his crops. He said he had also threatened to kill the children entering his fields.
On Thursday, he said that Anshu along with other children entered the fields and Babu Lal chased them. He caught Anshu and slapped him before drowning him in a sewerage pit and fleeing, he said. When the other children informed village residents, they gathered to rescue the child, however he was dead.
Deputy superintendent of police (DSP), Samrala Waryam Singh said that the accused tried to escape from the village to avoid arrest but the police nabbed him in hours. He said that he would grow potatoes but children often stole them. Besides, he said, they would run over his crop, damaging it.