Paradip, Aug. 5: A 10-year-old boy had to part with his life for protesting against the attempts of a man who was allegedly trying to misbehave with his elder sister.

The accused, 25-year-old Pramod Nayak, had allegedly strangulated the boy at Siju on the outskirts of the port town yesterday.

Police arrested Nayak along with his accomplice in the crime. Inspector of Paradip Lock police station Jyotiranjan Samantray said the main accused and his partner had both confessed to committing the crime. The accused killed the boy, Debendra Nath, as he had made public his acts of misdemeanour.

A few days ago, Nayak had allegedly passed objectionable remarks and had resorted to eve-tease Nath’s sister. The victim, who was an eyewitness to it, later informed his parents about the incident. Based on Nath’s statement, local residents had later imposed Rs 5,000 penalty on the accused and made him give a written undertaking not to repeat such acts. This provoked Nayak to kill Nath.

Nayak, seething with revenge after being publicly humiliated, had allegedly hatched a ploy to take Nath’s life. He intercepted Nath at a deserted spot in the village, where he throttled Nath with a napkin and the boy died of asphyxiation.

Later, Nayak allegedly dumped Nath’s body along a roadside bush. Villagers spotted the deadbody yesterday, which triggered an outrage.

“As the incident occurred close on the heels of eve-teasing episode, the needle of suspicion was naturally pointed towards Pramod Nayak. We rushed to his house and caught him while he was about to flee. He was unrepentant and he promptly confessed to killing the boy. The villagers, however, decided to abide by law and handed him over to local police,” said Adikanda Behera, a resident of Siju.

Both the accused persons had been forwarded to court under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code, said a source in the police.