Ranchi: A 22-year-old youth was battered to death by his brother and sister-in-law in the small hours of Tuesday for damaging the hood of their auto-rickshaw.

Miraz Shah and Rozi Khatoon hit Reyaz, a labourer, with bricks near his house at Masjid Lane under Jagannathpur thana here a little before 4am until he fell on the ground and started gasping. They then dragged him to his house and left him there to die, sources said. While Rozi has been arrested, Miraz hasn't been picked up yet.

Police reached around 6am and took Reyaz to RIMS where doctors declared him brought dead.

"Two days ago, Reyaz accidentally tore the hood of Miraz's auto-rickshaw. Soon after, Rozi came and demanded Rs 500 compensation which Reyaz could not afford. Rozi and her husband then bludgeoned him to death," a resident said.

Jagannathpur OC Anup Karmakar said investigation has started.

"A family dispute was the reason behind the murder. The body has been sent for autopsy. It's too early to comment," Karmakar said.

Another resident said had Reyaz's other family members been present, the incident wouldn't have happened. "Reyaz's mother Shahjadi Khatoo had gone to a marriage function. His two elder brothers, Ezaz and Sonu, were sleeping on the first floor of the two-storey house. Had they been awake, Reyaz would have been safe," the resident said.