Seoni (MP):Two tribal men died after they were allegedly assaulted by a group of 15-20 people over suspicion of cow slaughter in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni district, police said on Tuesday. Another person was injured in the incident, they said. The complainant in the case and the opposition Congress in the BJP-ruled state have alleged the attackers belong to the Bajrang Dal.
Some 20 people have been booked in connection with the incident, which took place at Simaria under Kurai police station limits between 2:30 am and 3 am on Monday, including six on charges of murder, an official said.
After the incident, a group led by Congress legislator Arjun Singh Kakodia started a protest on the Jabalpur-Nagpur highway. The Seoni Superintendent of Police and other officials visited the protest site. "Two tribal men have died. It was alleged a group of 15-20 people went to the victims' house, accused them of killing a cow and assaulted them. The two men died while being taken to hospital and another sustained minor injury. A post-mortem is yet to be conducted," Additional Superintendent of Police SK Maravi told sources.
"A case of murder has been registered at the Kuarai police station and police teams are searching for the accused. Some of the accused are named (in the complaint) and others are unidentified. We have taken 2-3 suspects into custody. Some 12 kilograms of meat has been found in the victims' house," Maravi said. The complainant Brajesh Batti, who was injured in the incident, said the mob was hitting Sampat Batti, a resident of Sagar, and Simaria resident Dhansa with sticks when he arrived at the spot, and he, too, was assaulted.