48 hours on, 20-year-old untraceable; village cordoned off as protests erupt
Meerut, Jan. 11 -- A Dalit woman who was kidnapped in front of her mother after the latter was fatally assaulted by the same man remained untraceable even 48 hours after the incident, in the Sardhana area of this district.
Also, the situation in Kapsad, where the crime was reported, remained politically tense with the district administration restricting the entry of political leaders, activists and even media personnel into the village. On Thursday, Sunita Jatav, 45, and her 20-year-old daughter were allegedly stopped in the fields by one Paras Som, who struck the mother with a sugarcane sickle before abducting the youngster.
Even on Saturday, police kept assuring that several teams were working rigorously to rescue the woman and arrest the accused. Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Vipin Tada said 10 police teams, under the supervision of two SP-rank officers, were conducting raids to rescue the woman. "A case has been registered under stringent sections, and some individuals have been taken into custody for questioning. The accused will be arrested soon," he said.
Meanwhile, all roads leading to Kapsad were sealed off as officials anticipated visits by several political leaders. The movement of all types of vehicles was stopped, and no outsider was allowed to enter the village. Only locals were permitted after their strict identity verification.
Samajwadi Party MP Ramjilal Suman and party workers were stopped at the Kashi Toll Plaza when they were heading towards Meerut. The police action sparked anger among the workers, who began protesting at the toll plaza. Heated arguments broke out between the police and party workers, forcing authorities to summon additional police force to prevent escalation. Then, Sardhana MLA Atul Pradhan reached the toll plaza with his supporters and accused the police of acting under pressure. Later, Suman, Pradhan, former MLA Yogesh Verma, SP district president Karmveer Gumi and their supporters staged a sit-in protest. Also, a women's delegation of the Samajawadi Party was prevented from entering Kapsad.
In response to the unrest, the Rapid Action Force (RAF) has been deployed at Kashi Toll Plaza. Police later convinced the MP to return.
Tension escalated further when Bhim Army workers, arriving in dozens of vehicles from Delhi, Noida and Ghaziabad, were stopped at the same toll plaza. Agitated workers tried to remove barricades, and some forcibly crossed the toll plaza, leading to chaos and forcing police to adopt stricter measures.
A protest was also reported at Salawa Chauraha, where members of a social organisation gathered to demand the arrest of the accused.
Meanwhile, DIG Kalanidhi Naithani inspected the checkpoints and issued necessary instructions to officers on the ground. Due to heavy barricading at Salawa Chauraha in Sardhana, traffic on the Chaudhary Charan Singh Kanwar Route came to a standstill, resulting in a several-kilometre-long traffic jam....
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