Bhubaneswar, Oct. 26: A group of people today beat up a youth, who appeared to be chasing a girl at the Unit-II market here.

However, high drama unfolded after it was known that the youth and the girl were lovers and had been in a relationship for the past few years.

Eyewitnesses said the incident took place around 5pm when the girl had gone shopping with her father in the market. "The 22-year-old youth had a heated argument with the girl. Later, the girl's father intervened in the matter. The youth then had a war of words with the girl's father and, thereafter, started chasing the girl," said an eyewitness.

Later, it was learnt that their relationship was not acceptable to their families.

The incident created chaos in the market, popularly known as Market Building, for sometime as the people present there started watching the youth chasing the girl.

On seeing this and mistaking the youth to be an eve-teaser the people nabbed and beat him up. An eyewitness said: "But the girl started crying when the mob was manhandling the youth. This aroused our suspicion."

Later, the people rang up the police control room and handed him over to the police.

Shoppers stopped in their tracks trying to figure out what was going on. "Marketing activities came to a halt with people discussing the incident with each other. Though we informed the police, they reached a little late," said another eyewitness.

The police said the both the girl and the youth were majors and having an affair for the past few years. "The boy told us that he wanted to elope with the girl, but her father came in the way. Later, the girl started running and the boy chased her, raising suspicion among others, who chased both of them and caught and beat up the youth," said an officer of Capital police station.

Assistant commissioner of police Aseem Kumar Panda said both the girl and the youth were released as they were majors. "The girl did not want to lodge any complaint," said Panda. The police further said that despite resistance from their respective families the girl and the youth were determined to get married.