Tension grips Rajasthan village after chopped body parts of woman found

Tension gripped Chol village in Rajasthan after chopped body parts of a 30-year-old woman were found near the settlements of a nomadic tribe on Saturday, police said.

Meera had gone to attend a religious function on Friday night and was missing since. Her chopped body parts were found a day later close to the settlements of the Kalbelia community.

Angry villagers caught hold of three persons suspected of killing the woman and thrashed them.

"The villagers tied them to a tree and tried to set them afire. They also pelted stones on a police party that rushed to the spot on receiving information about the incident," SP Udaipur RP Goyal said.

When police tried evacuating them, they set their jeep on fire though no one was injured in the blaze, he said.

The SP, however, said that 16 people, including 14 policemen and SDM Mukesh Kalal, were injured in the stone pelting incident.

"Two critically injured were admitted to a hospital while others were given primary treatment. Police fired tear gas shells to bring the situation under control," IG Udaipur Anand Srivastava said.

35 persons have been arrested in connection with the incident, he said.