Fear of Parthi gang grips people

Ongole: The villagers of Malakonda in Valetivaripalem mandal in Prakasam district caught a stranger in the village and assaulted him for not answering to their queries. 

Last week, a person was caught by the villagers of Jemukuladinne in Darsi mandal and tied him up to a pole before beating him up.  On May 8, a couple was caught by the villagers of Timmapuram in Giddalur mandal and handed over them to the police.

On the same day, the villagers of Posupalle in Komarole mandal tied a person to a pole and beat him before the police arrived to take him into custody. The victims in all these incidents have no rivalry with anyone in the village, but their looks and attire gave rise to suspicion among the villagers who suspected that they belonged to the Parthi gang.

Parthi is an Indo-Scythian tribe that has a hoary past as roving warriors and skillful archers. They spread across the states of Maharashtra, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab and Haryana and served the royal families.

As their kingdoms crumbled, they lost their jobs and started to rob villages of their livelihood. They were hunted down by the British and named as criminals in the police records. The people from the tribe usually move in a group of four to 12 members and sell small tools and utensils in the day time to identify the suitable house to rob during the night. They have a dubious reputation of killing people in the houses to eliminate witnesses.

In April, the district police offices in Prakasam, Nellore, Chittoor, Kadapa, Anantapur and other neighbouring districts received alerts from intelligence officials that one or two Parthi gangs entered their surrounding areas and suggested them to step up vigil during the night.

The police conducted searches in make shift tents, temporary shelters on the outskirts, under flyovers and other areas to identify suspects. They published posters and pamphlets with pictures of men and women and asked the public to be vigilant.

Now, every person in Prakasam and other districts, are stopping suspects and asking them questions. They started attacking the people who do not answer them without doubting whether they understand Telugu or mentally fit or not.

That is how a Hindi speaking man was attacked at Malakonda, the mentally retarded persons at Jemukuladinne and Posupalle and the poor couple at Thimmapuram. 

In similar incidents in other districts, a person was killed in the attack of people in Adoni of Kurnool district. Police arrested seven people for leading the attack. Still, there are people forming teams in village as security and protection from the Parthi gang.

Speaking to The Hans India, District Superintendent of Police B Satya Yesubabu said that false messages and misleading information were spreading very fast through the social media platforms and innocent people were being attacked.

He reiterated that two Parthi gangs were already arrested in the district in last few weeks and there was no movement of them now in Prakasam district. He urged the public not to involve themselves in violent incidents by instigating mobs and ending up in jail later. 

By Naresh Nandam