Elderly man killed, mob attacks family over bursting firecrackers

Two incidents of violence over firecracker bursting on Diwali were reported from Haryana's Faridabad on Friday.

An elderly man was allegedly beaten to death in Haryana's Faridabad after he objected to people bursting firecrackers in his locality, police said.

A case has been lodged on the basis of a complaint from the victim's son.

According to the complainant, Vinod, three men -- Raju, Dheeraj and Nandu -- were bursting firecrackers in front of the victim's residence in the Housing Board Colony in Faridabad's Sector 18 on Thursday evening. When his father objected to it, a verbal spat ensued, the complainant said.

Vinod managed to pacify the situation for the time being but at around 1 am, the three men came back and again started bursting firecrackers in front of their house, the complaint said.

As Vinod's father came out of the house and objected to it, he was allegedly thrashed by the three accused. Vinod and his wife were also allegedly roughed up by the three men when they tried to intervene.

The complainant's father succumbed to his injuries on the spot, police said, adding that a hunt is on to nab the accused. 

In another incident, a family bursting firecrackers on Diwali in Faridabad district was allegedly attacked with sticks and stones by a mob, police said.

Police said the incident occurred in Ballabhgarh town on Thursday. The Hindu family has also alleged that members of a Muslim family allegedly broke down the door of their house in Subhash Colony and sexually harassed one of them, they said.

According to police, some children were bursting firecrackers in the area, to which some people belonging to the minority community opposed, and issued threats to the kids.

When some women from the Hindu family went to the house of the accused, they were allegedly attacked with sticks, and bricks and stones were pelted at them, a police spokesperson said citing the complaint.

The attackers, then, broke the main door of the complainant's house and sexually harassed a girl of the family, police said. A CCTV footage of the alleged incident has been recovered.

Police has registered a case and has started an investigation in the matter, the spokesperson said.