Late-night fury turned deadly in Jharkhand’s Palamu district when four enraged youths allegedly torched a kirana shop in Medininagar’s Sual village after being denied cigarettes. The inferno razed the entire stock, including precious wedding preparations, inflicting a staggering Rs 10 lakh loss on proprietor Rajesh Kumar Gupta.
The drama unfolded past midnight on Wednesday. Rajesh described how the quartet hammered on his shutter, hurling insults and physically assaulting him when informed cigarettes were unavailable. Vowing retaliation, they departed—only for fire to suddenly engulf the premises minutes later.
Alerted promptly, Sadar thana police and firefighters contained the blaze with community assistance. But the toll was immense: shop goods, Rs 80,000 cash, and Rs 1.5 lakh in items for his brother’s imminent March 11 nuptials all reduced to ashes.
In his police complaint, Rajesh named Ritik Singh, Chhotu Singh, and accomplices, demanding rigorous prosecution. ‘Everything is gone; my family’s future hangs by a thread,’ he shared with reporters Thursday.
This brazen attack highlights rising lawlessness targeting small vendors. Authorities have launched a probe, vowing arrests soon. As the Gupta family grapples with ruin ahead of a major life event, the community rallies for support, calling for enhanced patrols to safeguard local commerce from such volatile threats.