Orchard Labourer Murdered Over Suspected Mango Theft in Surat

India

-Krishna Kripa

Updated: Monday, June 2, 2025, 23:12 [IST]

Five
individuals
have
been
detained
for
allegedly
killing
a
farm
worker
in
Gujarat’s
Surat
district.
The
incident
arose
from
suspicions
that
the
worker
had
stolen
mangoes
worth
Rs
50,000.
Suresh
Verma,
aged
48,
was
reportedly
attacked
by
the
accused
and
his
body
was
later
discarded
in
a
canal
on
May
21,
according
to
Bardoli
Deputy
Superintendent
of
Police
HL
Rathod.

The
suspects,
identified
as
Ashfak
Rayan,
Vinod
Agrawal,
Mohammed
Umar,
Dashrath
Maurya,
and
Yakub
Abdul
Gaffar,
face
murder
charges.
They
had
leased
a
mango
orchard
in
Bardoli’s
Akoti
village
and
employed
Verma
and
another
local
as
labourers.
Recently,
they
suspected
Verma
of
stealing
mangoes
and
selling
them,
Rathod
explained
to
reporters.

Details
of
the
Incident

On
the
night
of
May
21,
the
accused
tied
Verma
to
a
tree
at
the
farm
and
beat
him
until
he
lost
consciousness.
Ashfaq
then
contacted
Verma’s
wife,
demanding
Rs
50,000
as
compensation
for
the
alleged
theft.
Realising
Verma
had
died
from
the
assault,
they
transported
his
body
by
car
and
disposed
of
it
in
a
canal
in
Kamrej
taluka.

When
Verma
failed
to
return
home,
his
family
filed
a
missing
person
report
with
Bardoli
police.
They
also
informed
authorities
about
Ashfaq’s
demand
for
Rs
50,000.
Subsequently,
an
unidentified
body
was
found
by
Kamrej
police
in
the
canal.
After
Verma’s
family
identified
it
as
his,
a
murder
case
was
registered
on
May
31.

Arrests
and
Investigation

The
discovery
of
Verma’s
body
led
to
the
arrest
of
the
five
suspects.
The
police
are
continuing
their
investigation
into
the
circumstances
surrounding
the
crime.
The
case
highlights
issues
related
to
labourer
treatment
and
disputes
over
agricultural
produce.

The
authorities
are
working
to
gather
more
evidence
and
testimonies
to
strengthen
their
case
against
the
accused.
The
incident
has
raised
concerns
about
safety
and
justice
for
farm
workers
in
the
region.

With
inputs
from
PTI