• Source:PTI
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A Dalit woman was beaten to death in Gujarat’s Bhavnagar on Monday allegedly by two men who were enraged over her refusal to convince her son to withdraw a case registered in 2020 against them under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Police have registered a case and are investigating the matter. 

The victim, identified as Gitaben Maru (45), was allegedly thrashed with steel pipes by the accused and their two accomplices near the woman’s house on Sunday evening due to which she succumbed to her injuries the next day, a police official said. 

Deputy Superintendent of Police RR Singhal said the accused duo had asked the woman to withdraw the case against them and asked her to arrive at a compromise. After the woman refused the miscreants resorted to violence to end the case.  

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According to the FIR, the accused also threatened the victim’s husband and daughter, who rushed to save her and forced her to flee. They also damaged the CCTV cameras of a nearby shop and scared away onlookers. Before leaving, the accused asked the injured woman to vacate her house and shift elsewhere with her family.

"We had taken down Maru's complaint on Sunday night before she breathed her last and registered a first information report (FIR) against Shailesh Koli, his friend Rohal Koli, and their two unidentified aides for the attack. We have formed three teams to nab them," the senior official said as reported by news agency PTI. 

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Police have registered a case against the four people who were involved in the murder under several sections of the Indian Penal Code including murder, assault and criminal intimidation and relevant sections of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act. 

The victim’s family members and local Dalit leaders gathered outside the Sir Takhtasinhji General Hospital and refused to claim her body until all the four accused involved in the attack were arrested. 

(With PTI Inputs) 

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