Six booked after youth and friends allegedly assaulted in Nikol over messages sent to girl

A dispute over alleged repeated messages sent to a woman escalated into a violent assault in Ahmedabad’s Nikol area, where a youth and his friends were allegedly beaten with wooden sticks after being called for a “settlement meeting”.

According to Nikol police, six persons, including a woman, have been booked in connection with the incident.

Harshad Bharwad, an 18-year-old resident of Shaktinagar near Nana Chiloda, stated that he received a phone call from his friend Dhruv Panchal on the afternoon of May 24.

Dhruv informed Harshad that a youth who had allegedly been repeatedly messaging his sister had called him near Vrindavan Garden in Nikol to resolve the matter amicably. Dhruv allegedly asked Harshad to accompany him to the location.

Harshad subsequently reached the spot along with five of his friends. At the location, they allegedly found Rituraj Vaghela, Sahdevsinh Zala, Mitraj Bhati and Rudra Dodiya present there.

The complainant alleged that during the discussion, he and his friends questioned the accused over allegedly harassing the girl by repeatedly sending her messages.

The argument soon turned heated, following which the accused allegedly objected to Harshad and his friends interfering in the matter. Police said a scuffle then broke out between the two groups.

During the altercation, Vijaysinh Vaghela, father of accused Rituraj Vaghela, arrived at the scene in a four-wheeler along with his wife after learning about the dispute.

Vijaysinh Vaghela became enraged on seeing the altercation involving his son and allegedly removed a wooden stick from the vehicle before handing it to Rituraj, who then allegedly assaulted Harshad and his friends with it.

Police said the complainant and his companions raised an alarm, following which local residents gathered at the spot. The accused allegedly fled from the scene thereafter.

The injured youths later underwent medical treatment and subsequently approached the police to lodge a complaint.

Based on the complaint, Nikol police have registered a case against Rituraj Vaghela, Sahdevsinh Zala, Mitraj Bhati, Rudra Dodiya, Vijaysinh Vaghela and his wife.