The youth identified as Jay Prakash worked as a daily labourer. The incident was reported around 11 AM after which a police team was rushed to the village in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, nearly 60 kms from Delhi.
Agitated villagers did not allow Jay Prakash's body to be removed from the spot until media arrived there. Police later took away the body and said that the cause of death could be ascertained only after the post-mortem examination.
Jay Prakash lived with his mother Omvati, wife Guddi, and two brothers. His father Ram Avatar Singh passed away a few years ago. Their house is just stone's throw away from residence of Iqlakh, 50, who was killed by a mob a week ago over rumour that the family had slaughtered a calf and eaten its meat.
Jay Prakash was the eldest of the three siblings. While his younger brother Ravi (20) had recently shifted to Bihar, the youngest is Vijender (18).
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Villagers claimed that the police had been looking for Jay Prakash and his brothers for the past one week and his family was terrified because of that.
"Police are raiding houses in the village every day, leading to immense tension. They are harassing all, including people like Jay Prakash whose name was not present in the absconders' list," alleged Hari Ram Singh, a village representative.
Senior police officials confirmed that Jay Prakash's name was not in the list of absconders and denied allegations about raiding houses and spreading any kind of terror.
Yesterday, the administration had summoned 25 village heads from Bishada and neighbouring areas and held a meeting in which they discussed ways to stop rumour mongers who are believed to have influenced youth in the villages, leading to the violence.