Kendrapara: Residents of Bhekta village in Talchua marine police limits of the district stripped a man and beat him up after he had allegedly eloped with a girl from an influential family of the village.

The victim, identified as 25-year-old Rajendra Jena, was meted out instant justice on Monday by a group of local villagers, including the sitting sarpanch of Talchua gram panchayat. According to sources, Jena was taught a lesson for the act of elopement. The girl has been rescued.

The Kangaroo court deliberated over the crime committed by Jena near the gram panchayat office. A dozen of people, headed by the sarpanch, donned the mantle of judgeship and pronounced the verdict. In the process, they humiliated and punished Jena, who was stripped and paraded at the place. Later, he was beaten up black and blue by around five villagers designated for the "job" by the "court".

The entire sequence of torture was videographed and made viral on social media.

The victim had eloped with the daughter of an influential fish trader of Talchua fishing jetty. Jena had incidentally been employed in his fish trading farm. As he frequented his house on business related matter, he had developed intimacy with employer's daughter. Later, they had eloped last week.

The father of the girl tracked them down in Bhubaneswar, where the duo were planning to marry. Then they were brought to the village, where the fish trader complained against the boy before the sarpanch.

The victim, who sustained wounds and bruises in various parts of his body, is undergoing treatment at Rajnagar community health centre.

Police have swung into action following the complaint lodged by victim's elder brother, Sudarshan Jena.

A case under Indian Penal Code sections 307 (attempt to murder), 341 (wrongful restraint), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 294 (obscene act) and relevant sections of the Information Technology Act has been registered in this connection, said Rajnagar police station inspector Sukanta Patra.

A case was booked against four persons, including the sarpanch, Niranjan Bera, named in the FIR. The police have so far intercepted one Hiralal Mandal on charge of making the video viral. Search is on to nab others named in the FIR, he said.

In another development, local villagers staged a roadblock near Talchua marketplace, demanding immediate arrest of the culprits, including sarpanch Bera.

"The torture of this nature is in bad taste. It has given our village a bad name. It was the handiwork of select bunch of influential people. The majority of people living here are deeply shocked over the manner, in which the youth has been persecuted by them. The should be punished according to the law," said a villager, Nrusingha Behera.

Assault cuffs

Police arrested a man for attacking three villagers over previous dispute at Baliapal in Balasore. Sahadev Jena of Kankadapal has been produced in court.