30-year-old Vidyaram Katheria (s/o Vedram) was battered to death by members of the Muslim family living next to him in Shikohabad, district Firozabad, West UP. The incident occurred on the evening of 24 April in Mohalla Kazi Tola area, and a case has been lodged against 7 people – 3 brothers Pervez, Rohil, Yusuf (sons of Abdul Hamid) and 4 unnamed persons – for Vidyaram’s murder.
Hindi daily Jagran has quoted the victim’s brother Deviram as saying –
“The accused’s house is right next to ours. For some months now, they have been forcefully sleeping on our roof instead of their own. When we objected, they didn’t listen and instead threatened us. Due to this dispute, one month back, they had lodged a false case of harassment against my brother and had him jailed. We got my brother released the next day. Still, they continued sleeping on our roof which my brother Vidyaram opposed. On Tuesday, both of us were discussing this very issue, when the accused came out and thrashed my brother to death.”
It is reported that the accused first dragged Vidyaram out in the street and thrashed him with bamboo sticks. They then continued bashing his head against a wall until he was dead. They then dumped the body in a nearby lane and fled.
There is tension in the area and the victim’s relatives and friends were demanding arrest of the accused before cremating the body. Higher officials had to placate them with promises of a speedy investigation before they relented.
Vidyaram, who belonged to a Scheduled Caste (SC) community, was an Aara machine (chain saw) operator and is survived by his wife Baby and 4 children – 2 daughters – Shubham and Muskan and 2 sons – Peekay and Jeetu.
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