AHMEDABAD: Merely watching the Garba proved fatal for 21-year-old dalit youth who was brutally beaten to death allegedly by a group of upper caste community in Bhadraniya village of

early on Sunday morning.

Jayesh Bhailalbhai Solanki, living in

, had gone to watch garba along with his cousin and three others near

on the occasion of Dussehra.

Police arrested eight persons after a complaint was lodged by Prakash, a cousin of the deceased.

In the complaint, Prakash had told the police that they were sitting near the temple when a person named, Sanjay Patel, came there and started inquiring about what they were doing there.

“When we told him that we were watching garba, he started abusing us and even hurled casteist insults,” Prakash has stated. “He went back and returned with seven others and first slapped Prakash. When Jayesh tried to intervene, they dragged him away and started thrashing him.”

The complaint further says that some of the attackers picked up and flung Jayesh whose head banged on the wall. “Though he suffered severe head injury, they continued to beat him,” Prakash has alleged.

Sanjay Patel and his friends left the spot after other people arrived to see what the commotion was about. “Jayesh had fallen unconscious and we rushed him on a bike to Borsad hospital from where he was taken to Karamsad Medical College and Hospital. Doctors checked him and declared him dead,” Prakash told the police.

Saurabh Singh, superintendent of police, Anand, told TOI that all the eight accused had been arrested and were being interrogated. The accused have been booked for murder and under sections of Prevention of Atrocities against Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes Act.

Police arrested not only Sanjay Patel but also his brother Jignesh, Chintan Patel, Dhaval Patel, Rutvij Patel and his brother Vicky Patel, Ripen Patel and Dipesh Patel.

Solanki’s murder comes close on the heels of dalit youths being attacked by upper caste members for sporting moustaches in Gandhinagar district.

Jayesh’s death sparked massive anger in the Dalit community whose members laid seize to Bhadran police station.