Tribal youth killed on suspicion of theft by workers of under construction tribal museum in Gujarat

Ahmedabad: A tribal villager was killed while another suffered serious injuries after they were beaten up by a group of workers engaged in the construction of the National Tribal Museum at Gurudeshwar, about six km from Statue of Unity in Kevadia in Narmada district.

Police said that the two tribal youths from nearby villages had gone to the site of under construction museum on Tuesday midnight. Police said that primary investigation has revealed that the youths had allegedly gone there with intension of stealing construction materials like iron pipes.  

"Initial investigation has revealed that they were caught while stealing by the workers. They beat the youths with PVC pipes and wooden sticks. One of them collapsed at the site and died. The other youth was admitted to Rajpipla civil hospital where he is undergoing treatment," Narmada district superintendent of police Prashant Sumbe told DH.

He said that FIR has been registered against six persons who all have been arrested. The accused are workers from Godhra, Amreli, Patan and Uttar Pradesh. Sumbe confirmed that the tribal youths were first beaten up at the construction site and were taken to another spot where they were beaten up again.

The FIR has been registered on the basis of a complaint filed by Sanjay Tadvi, 35, a resident of Gabhana village in Garudeshwar taluka. He told police that he and his friend Jayesh Tadvi while passing through the construction site of the museum tried to steal iron pipes to sell them as scrap for money.

Sanjay has said that "they were caught by the accused persons who tied their hands and after learning that they were tribals two of them started beating them with PVC pipe and wooden stick and three to four others kicked and punched them. During the beating, Jayesh collapsed and died."

The accused have been booked under section 103 (2) of Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS), rioting, among other sections along with sections of atrocity act. 

Meanwhile, Aam Aadmi Party's MLA from Dediapada in Narmada district and tribal leader Chaitar Vasava alleged that registering FIR against six workers and supervisors was not enough.

He demanded Rs 1 crore compensation to deceased family and Rs 50 lakh to injured while alleging that many leaders were trying to burry the case by offering Rs 5 lakh to the families. 

The under construction museum has been sanctioned by Ministry of Tribal Affairs which is part of ten national museums dedicated to tribal freedom fighters. These museums are located in Gurudeshwar (Gujarat), Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, Manipur, Mizoram and Goa.