6-year-old boy killed by misplaced blow during fight in Jalgaon; man arrested

Nashik: A six-year-old boy was killed after being accidentally struck by a wooden staff during a fight between two men in Avhane village of Jalgaon taluka on Saturday afternoon, the police said.

The accused, Machhindra Patil (32), has been arrested.The deceased boy, Vansh Barela, was watching the altercation near his house when Patil allegedly swung a heavy wooden staff at a man he was fighting with over an unpaid debt of Rs 900. The intended target, Bhavesh Dhangar, dodged the blow, but the staff struck the child standing behind him.Additional SP Sandip Gavit said, “The boy was immediately taken to a local hospital, where he was declared brought dead.”Superintendent of police Shrikant Dhivare said, ”The Jalgaon taluka police have taken Patil into custody, and an FIR is being registered against him for culpable homicide.”Vansh, who belonged to a family originally from Adavad in Chopda taluka, had been living in Avhane for the past one-and-a-half years, where his family worked as caretakers of a farm. The incident occurred near a buffalo shed close to Patil’s paan shop.The police said the dispute between Patil and Dhangar escalated quickly into a physical fight before the fatal blow was delivered.