A 19-year-old student preparing for the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) was shot dead by suspected cattle smugglers in Gorakhpur on the late night of September 16, leading to massive protests in the area on Tuesday (September 16, 2025). The deceased, identified as Dileep Gupta, a native of Mahuachafi Tola under the Pipraich police station limits, died while trying to chase cattle smugglers. Angry villagers intercepted one of the vehicles belonging to the suspects and set it ablaze.
Later, villagers blocked the Gorakhpur-Pipraich road for hours, and pelted stones at the police who arrived to clear the road. Police personnel from neighbouring police stations, and a unit of the Provincial Armed Constabulary, were deployed to control the situation.
“We received information that around 3 a.m., cattle smugglers arrived in the village in two vehicles. Locals chased them, and one vehicle was struck in mud. A student who chased the smugglers was taken by them in the other vehicle and thrown mid-way. He succumbed to head injuries. We have registered a complaint under the relevant Sections, and five teams have been formed to nab the accused. People are claiming that firing took place, but prima facie, it doesn’t appear that any injury has been caused by firing,” Raj Karan Nayyar, Senior Superintendent of Police, told local media.
The Opposition hit out at the Uttar Pradesh government, terming the incident a manifestation of the deteriorating law and order in the State. “Such an incident in the home district of the Chief Minister shows that criminals have no fear of the police, and law enforcement mechanisms. Previously, in governments, the CM’s district was considered an ideal region as far as law and order was concerned. But presently, across the State, the law and order situation is at its lowest, with anti-social elements getting a free run,” Shahnawaz Alam, national secretary, the Congress, said.
Published – September 16, 2025 09:35 pm IST
