One held for assault on senior citizen over beef suspicion; three co-accused still at large

Thane: A man was arrested in the district on Wednesday in connection with the assault of a senior citizen on a train on suspicion of carrying beef, police said here, even as the three other accused whose bail has been cancelled remained at large.

Suresh Jadhav (19) was produced before a magistrate here who remanded him in police custody till September 6, said senior inspector Archana Dusane of Government Railway Police (GRP).

Jadhav was nabbed from Diva in Thane district, she added.

Ashraf Ali Sayyed Hussain (72), native of Jalgaon district in north Maharashtra, was assaulted by a group on board the Dhule-Mumbai CSMT Express on August 28 on the suspicion that he was carrying beef.

A video of the incident went viral on social media and the police arrested Akash Awhad (30), Nitesh Ahire (30) and Jayesh Mohite (21) on August 31. They were presented in a court the next day, which granted bail to them. The trio were going to Mumbai to take part in a police recruitment drive when the incident took place.

The GRP later added charges of dacoity and hurting religious sentiments in the case, and also applied to the court for cancellation of bail. The court cancelled their bail accordingly, and police are now trying to trace the trio.