In a shocking incident, a sewadar of Delhi's Kalkaji Temple was beaten to death by a group of men after a scuffle broke out between the two sides over the demand of "chunni prasad" at the temple on Friday night, police said.
According to police, a PCR call about a clash was received at around 9:30 pm. The dispute began when some devotees allegedly demanded the "chunni prasad" after having darshan of the deity at the temple. This led to a heated argument, following which the accused brutally thrashed the sewadar with sticks and repeated blows, leaving him critically injured.
CCTV shows brutal assault
CCTV footage shows the sewdar lying unconscious on the ground and two men repeatedly hitting him with sticks, leaving him critically injured.
The victim has been identified as Yogendra Singh (35), a native of Hardoi in Uttar Pradesh. He had been serving at the temple for the past 15 years. Following the attack, he was rushed to the AIIMS Trauma Center, where he succumbed to the injuries inflicted.
Eyewitness details what happened
Speaking to ANI, Raju, another sewadar at the temple, said the accused had been visiting the Kalkaji Temple in the past also and often behaved aggressively. He said on Friday, a group of 10-15 people took Yogesh outside the temple and assaulted him with iron rods and sticks.
Raju further elaborated that the accused were a group of 10-15 people who had asked for a "chunni prasad" and were told by Yogesh to wait for a few minutes, after which they started threatening him.
"Whenever these people came to the temple, they came with an aggressive attitude and expected us to give them whatever they wanted," Raju added.
Three accused arrested
Local residents managed to apprehend one of the accused, Atul Pandey (30), who was handed over to the police. Pandey, a resident of Dakshinpuri, Delhi, has been arrested in connection with the assault. An FIR has been filed under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), and authorities are actively working to track down the other suspects involved in the incident. Two more accused have been apprehended. The details of the arrested individuals are as follows: Mohan @ Bhura, aged 19, son of Anil Bidhuri, from 1134 Churiya Mohalla, Tughlaqabad, Delhi; Kuldeep Bidhuri, aged 20, son of Om Prakash Bidhuri, from 1135 Churiya Mohalla, Tughlaqabad, Delhi; and Atul Pandey, aged 30, son of Sadhu Pandey, a resident of Dakshinpuri, Delhi, and a permanent resident of Gorakhpur, UP. The police are continuing their investigation to locate the remaining suspects.
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