A group of tribals allegedly kidnapped and killed a man, then attacked a police team that attempted to rescue him, resulting in the death of a cop in Madhya Pradesh’s Mauganj district on Saturday, an official said.
The incident took place in Gadra village, about 25 km from the district headquarters and police have taken five persons into custody in connection with the violence, he said.
“Two persons including an ASI (assistant sub-inspector) have been killed and other policemen have sustained minor injuries,” Rewa Range Deputy Inspector General of Police Saket Pandey told PTI.
Police had to fire in the air after being surrounded by the mob to move to safety, sources said.
Asked about the police firing, Pandey said that he was on his way to the spot. “Let me reach there and check it out,” he said.
Local sources said a group of Kol tribe members kidnapped a man named Sunny Dwivedi on Saturday suspecting that he had killed a tribal, Ashok Kumar, some months ago. As per police records, Kumar was killed in a road accident.
After being alerted about Dwivedi’s abduction, a team headed by Shahpur police station house officer Sandeep Bhartiya rushed to Gadra village to rescue him.
But by that time, Dwivedi had allegedly died after being beaten in a room, police said.
When the policemen opened the room, a group of tribals attacked them with sticks and stones, injuring some of them.
The injured policemen and officers were rushed to hospitals, but ASI Charan Gautam of the Special Armed Force succumbed to his injuries during treatment, an official said.
A heavy police force has been deployed to bring the situation under control, he said.
Meanwhile, Mauganj Collector Ajay Shrivastava and Superintendent of Police Rachna Thakur in a video message said that section 163 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, which relates to maintaining public order and preventing disturbances, has been clamped in the area.
The collector said the situation is fully under control.
Both officials have appealed to the people to let police and authorities do their work and help them maintain peace in the area.