Hazaribag, April 1 Police have arrested three young men for allegedly killing a 40-year-old man during a Ram Navami procession in Hazaribag district of Jharkhand, a police officer said on Wednesday.
The incident occurred in Gadokhar village, under the Pelawal outpost limits, on the night of March 27 and 28, when a procession from Gadokhar Shiv Temple was underway.
Hazaribag Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Amit Anand said that the victim asked the accused to get off a DJ vehicle, after which a confrontation ensued, and they attacked him with a 'bhujali', a traditional sharp weapon that they were carrying as part of the Ram Navami procession.
DJ vehicles, customized commercial trucks carrying high-output speakers, are a common feature in such processions.
"We have arrested three accused in this case. Four people were involved in the murder. They brutally attacked the victim with a sharp weapon when the procession was underway that night. The accused confessed to the crime," Hazaribag Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Amit Anand said.
The police officer said that all the arrested accused were 18 years old. The murder weapon has also been recovered from the house of one of them.
They were produced before a court on Tuesday.
The fourth accused, a 48-year-old man, is still at large, and police are conducting raids to apprehend him, the police officer said.
The victim was identified as Ramkumar Sahu alias Rama Saw, the brother of a local mukhiya (village head).