Devotees mistaken for thieves beaten, 1 killed

Udaipur: Two devotees visiting the famous Jhantla Mata temple near Chittorgarh were brutally assaulted by local shopkeepers who mistook them for bike lifters, leading to the death of one devotee and severe injuries to the other.
After the incident, which occurred Thursday afternoon, the surviving victim, Rakesh Kumar Nayak (25) of Netwal Maharaj village, was admitted to the district hospital for medical treatment.The deceased was identified as Shankarlal Khatik (50) of Singhpur.
The Khatik community, shocked by the incident, assembled outside the hospital demanding justice for the victims on Friday. The police administration was given a 24-hour ultimatum to arrest the assailants. Chittorgarh MLA Chandrabhan Singh Akya held discussions with district collector Alok Ranjan to ensure suitable compensation for the deceased's family and swift arrest of the assailants.
The Chanderia police got a post-mortem examination of Khatik's body conducted and initiated investigation into the matter. A case was registered against unidentified assailants, encompassing charges of murder, assault, theft, resistance and unlawful assembly. Efforts were underway to analyse CCTV footage and gather evidence for the arrest of assailants. “A couple of suspects have been detained,” Chanderia SHO Dharamraj Meena said.
Nayak and Khatik, who belong to the SC community, had visited the temple to seek blessings before the unfortunate event unfolded. As they returned to their parked bike in the temple's vicinity, confusion arose when Nayak mistakenly tried to unlock a different bike with his key. Locals and shopkeepers, who agitated over goat thefts in the area two days back, suspected the two devotees to be thefts, said police.
As per Nayak’s statement to the police, the suspicion sparked a brutal assault by approximately 20 to 30 shopkeepers who wielded rubber gas pipes, sticks and resorted to kicking and punching the devotees for half an hour. The assailants then forced the victims to flee the area, leaving them severely injured.
Despite their injuries, both victims managed to reach Kashmor village, about 1.5 km away, where Khatik succumbed to his wounds. Netwal Maharaj village’s sarpanch Rajdeep Singh Ranawat, who happened to pass from Kashmor, recognised Nayak and took the duo to the Chittorgarh hospital. Nayak, in addition to his physical injuries, also reported a theft of Rs 15,000, money intended for a loan installment, during the assault.