SASARAM: A dalit villager was stoned to death and at least 40 people were injured, eight of them seriously, as a 500-strong mob of upper caste men attacked them for defying their diktat of not to unfurl the tricolour in front of a temple of Sant Ravidas at Baddi village in Rohtas district, 160km from Patna, on Independence Day.

The deceased was identified as Vilas Ram. The assailants did not spare even schoolchildren as they attacked them with rods and later threw some of the children down from the roof a house, where they had taken shelter, while the policemen allegedly looked the other way. Most of the injured are elderly, women and school-going children. The seriously injured were referred to PMCH in Patna.

Reports reaching the district HQ here said tension had been brewing in the upper caste-dominated village for the last 15 days after the upper caste villagers decided to install a statue of freedom fighter Nishant Singh and unfurl the tricolour on the small plot at the entrance of the Ravidas temple, where dalits had been unfurling the national flag, on August 15. Sensing the gravity of the situation, the local police convened a meeting of both the sides at the Baddi police station on Wednesday. But the standoff continued as the upper caste villagers allegedly stuck to their decision and the dalits refused to bow down.

As a result of the assault on Thursday, a woman’s pregnancy ended in a miscarriage. Several houses of dalits and the Ravidas temple were partially torched.

In a swift reaction, Rohtas SP Vikas Burman suspended Baddi police station SHO Balwan Singh on the charge of dereliction of duty. Burman said 11 of the 35 named accused were arrested and the police were in the process of procuring property attachment warrants against the remaining accused.

On Friday, state industries minister Renu Devi visited the village at chief minister Nitish Kumar ’s behest. Principal secretary (home) Amir Subhani and IG (weaker sections) Arivind Pandey also visited the spot and the hospital where some of the injured were being treated.

Subhani said the Rohtas DM had been directed to cancel the firearms licences of all the accused named in the case. They would be put on speedy trial. The deceased will get a compensation of Rs 4.5 lakh and the injured Rs 60,000 each.

Rohtas district JD(U) president and Karakat MLA Rajeshwar Raj, on his return from Baddi, said the incident could have been averted had the administration taken precautionary measures. Local leaders of BSP and CPI (New Democracy) burned the effigy of chief minister in protest against the incident.