Meerut: A 62-year-old Dalit man was allegedly gunned down by four local Gujjar youths in a village in Saharanpur on Wednesday evening. According to police, two motorcycle-borne youths, who were inebriated, entered into a heated argument with the victim after their bike accidentally hit his cot placed outside his house. While the youths left from the spot after a while, they returned with two of their aides and shot dead Sukkad. The incident was reported from Bhatla village.Considering the sensitivity of the case, senior police officials, including SSP Upendra Agarwal, rushed to the scene of crime to avoid any untoward incident. Heavy force has been deployed in the village to maintain peace. Sources said that the Gujjar-dominated village has a sizeable Dalit population.“All four accused — Ashu, Govind, Lalit and Ankit — have been arrested. They were heavily drunk at the time of the incident. Several teams were pressed into action and the accused were traced and nabbed. They have now been sent to jail,” SSP Upendra Agarwal said.The two communities have been at the loggerheads on several occasions in the past leading to violent clashes in several parts of western UP. Earlier, in Meerut’s Shobhapur village, a Dalit youth was allegedly shot dead by Gujjars in the aftermath of violence during the Dalit agitation. The incident escalated tension between the two communities.In Baghpat, a Dalit youth was allegedly brutally assaulted by Gujjars after a panchayat ordered action against the community members to avenge elopement of a Gujjar girl with a Dalit youth. A few days later, the youth died at a medical facility in Meerut.

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