New Delhi [India], March 7 : Arun Kumar, elder brother of the deceased on Saturday demanded an encounter after the death of his brother Tarun Kumar during a clash that erupted in the Uttam Nagar area of New Delhi during Holi celebrations.
He stated that the chaos erupted after a balloon slipped from a child's hand and landed on the top of a woman's head. The woman initiated the clash, which ultimately led to the death of Tarun Kumar.
"A balloon fell from a child's hand. It landed on a woman. She started this entire clash... These people want only their community to live here and no one else... They wanted to fight, so they put that woman forward as a pretext to start the fight... The police are only saying that arrests have been made, but they have not yet provided any evidence of the arrest... There were at least 20-25 people (involved in the clash)... We demand an encounter. There should be rules like the Yogi government here," he said.
Special Commissioner of Police Madhupur Tiwari arrived in Uttam Nagar to meet the family of the deceased. Heavy Police force and Rapid Action Force (RAF) have been deployed in the area.
Deputy Commissioner of Police, Dwarka, Kushal Pal Singh, stated that the clash occurred during Holi between two communities in which Kumar was injured. He succumbed to his injuries at 12 noon on Thursday. Initially, a case under the serious offence of 'culpable homicide not amounting to murder' was filed. Later, the murder charge was added to it.
"We received a call around 11 pm on 4 March that a person's head had been cracked open by his neighbour. Our special staff also reached the incident site. We saw that a clash has broken out between two different communities. Three people were injured on one side, and five people were injured on the other side. Tarun Kumar succumbed to his injuries in the hospital around 12 noon the next day... Because this was a sensitive matter, we had already filed a case under the serious offence of 'culpable homicide not amounting to murder'. We later added the murder charge to it. During preliminary investigation, we found that the two families had known each other for the last 50 years. They had come here in 1965 from a district in Rajasthan. They had been living in this area since 2004," he said.
Additional DCP Dwarka District Niharika Bhatt assured that at least seven people, including a juvinile has been arrested in the murder case of Kumar.
"The FIR was registered on the first night itself, and 5 people, including a juvenile, were arrested. We are looking after the law and order, and we have arrested 2 more people now, bringing the total number to 7. Delhi police is heavily deployed from senior to junior officers," she said.
Moreover, Delhi Health Minister Pankaj Singh also assured the family of the deceased that seven individuals are in police custody and strict action will be taken against them.
"We met the family of the victim and reassured them that 7 people have been arrested... An accurate investigation will definitely be done, and the accused will be subjected to appropriate action. The family will be given compensation... I had a conversation with the Joint CP, and appropriate action will be taken..." he said.
BJP MP Kamaljeet Sehrawat condemned the incident, reiterating that the accused will face consequences.
"It is very shameful, when a kid hits someone by mistake, and such an incident was carried out... We are consoling the family, and the accused will not be spared at any cost," she said.
The 25-year-old man succumbed to injuries he sustained during a fight that broke out between neighbours from different communities during Holi celebrations.