Law student

The student and two of his friends had gone to the eatery on Saturday night and were waiting at the stairs after placing their order when they allegedly had an argument with Shankar, who was having dinner with two friends. The officer said Saroj and his friends attacked the trio with chairs after the altercation. “The students hit waiter Munna, who retaliated by hitting Saroj on his head with a rod. Amit and his staff dragged Saroj out of the restaurant and other two students fled. Shankar and his aides then attacked Saroj with rods and bricks,” Kulhary said.

The restaurant owner took Saroj to a private hospital, where he died on Sunday morning.

Colonelganj police station inspector Awadhesh Singh said people made video clips of the assault, which helped the police identify the assailants. The body was sent for an autopsy, he said.

The student was from a Dalit family in the Hathigawa area of Pratapgarh. His brother Mahesh Chandra Saroj filed an FIR at Colonelganj police station.

SP president Akhilesh Yadav called the murder an indicator that law and order had worsened in UP.