india

Updated: Aug 29, 2019 02:27 IST

At least 16 members of a family, including three women, were wounded in an acid attack following an altercation over stalking of a girl at a village in Vaishali district on Wednesday.

Eight of those injured in the incident are said to be in a serious condition and have been admitted to a government hospital in Hajipur. Police said the incident was a fallout of stalking and harassment of a college girl by some youths for the last several days.

According to the police, the family members first reprimanded the youths. However, when they did not relent, the family later threatened them of legal action and used force to drive them away. On Tuesday, the alleged stalkers came with some men and picked up a quarrel with the locals and family members of the girl. The altercation turned violent and the two sides exchanged blows. Some in the crowd also fired shots in air deter the other side. Somehow, peace was restored by the intervention of senior citizen.

On Wednesday, however, a group of people barged into the house of Devendra Bhagat and attacked the family with acid. When his relatives came to their rescue, the attackers threw acid on them as well.

According to police, nearly 20 people attacked the family “to teach them a lesson”.

DSP (Sadar) Raghav Dayal, while confirming injuries to 16 people in the acid attack, said it prima facie appeared that the trouble started with quarrel among youths of both sides.

The victim’s family claimed they were targeted because they had opposed harassment of a girl. They alleged that one Balindra Sharma had led the group of miscreants, who included the stalkers.

“It was premeditated attack,” said Devendra Bhagat’s brother Ravindra Bhagat. “Our house is next to Devendra’s house. When we heard screams coming from his house, we rushed there to find out what had gone wrong and were shocked to see a crowd of men thrashing my brother and his family members. When we reached their home, the attackers, who were carrying acid in glass bottles, threw it at us.”

Two separate FIRs have been lodged in the case. “We are carrying out a probe. Action against the guilty would be taken soon,” Dayal said.