A father and son were killed after violence broke out between two sides during a village panchayat called to resolve a land dispute in Pratapgarh district of Uttar Pradesh, police said on Sunday.
A panchayat was being held in Shiekhupura village in the Raniganj area of Pratapgarh between the families of Chandramani Mishra and Daya Shankar Mishra to resolve a land dispute. Two lawyers, Vimal Tiwari and Suresh Chandra Tripathi, were acting as mediators.
However, even as talks were on, the two sides, who are said to be related, got engaged in “maar peet” (physical fight) and used lathis on each other, said Pratapgarh Superintendent of Police Abhishek Singh.
Mr. Daya Shankar Mishra and his son Anand Mishra died of their injuries while Mr. Chandramani Mishra and three others were injured, said the police. An eyewitness told local media that the other side attacked them with an axe.
One held
While the police have arrested one accused Rakesh Mishra, son of Mr. Chandramani Mishra, four teams have been formed to nab the others.
Mr. Singh said that after the violence the two sides took their injured to hospital but did not inform the police about the incident.
A sub-inspector and two constables were suspended for not keeping a watch on the land dispute and failing to get the case disposed of, said the officer.
