Speech-impaired teen beaten to death during T20 World Cup final over ‘wrong cheer’ after India wicket

PATNA: Even as the country was watching the epic class between India and New Zealand in ICC Men’s T20 World Cup final on Sunday evening, a tragic incident unfolded in Vaishali district, where a speech-impaired teenager was allegedly beaten to death following a misunderstanding during the match.

The victim, 17-year-old Kundan Kumar, was allegedly assaulted in Jakkopur village under Mahnar police station area on Sunday evening while he was watching the match with other local youths on a cellphone.


Kundan, son of farmer Brijkishor Rai and a resident of ward no. 18 of the village, was the youngest among four siblings. According to police, the accused has been identified as Kisan Kumar (17), son of Visunkant Thakur, who lives in the neighbourhood.

Villagers said a group of teenagers had gathered to watch the final match on a cellphone when the incident occurred. During the game, when India lost a wicket, Kundan allegedly shouted. Another youth allegedly misinterpreted his reaction as a celebration of India losing the wicket.

What began as a brief exchange soon escalated into a heated argument and then a physical fight.

According to Kundan’s mother, the tragedy unfolded suddenly. “On March 8, Kundan went out of the house for some work. It is not known how he ended up near those people. Some boys from the village were watching the match on a cellphone. My son also started watching there,” she said.

She alleged that one of the youths asked Kundan to move away but he stayed.

“When India’s first wicket fell, Kundan screamed. They thought he was happy about the wicket falling. The youths beat him up and smashed his head,” she alleged.

After the assault, locals rushed Kundan to Mahnar Community Health Centre (CHC), where he was given primary treatment. However, seeing his critical condition, doctors referred him to Hajipur Sadar Hospital, from where he was referred to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH). But Kundan died on the way to Patna early Monday morning.

Mahnar SDPO Praveen Kumar said, “The incident of assault took place in a mutual dispute between two youths over watching cricket. During the altercation, Kundan fell on a stone after being pushed, which caused him serious injuries. He was being taken to the PMCH for treatment but succumbed to his injuries on the way,” the SDPO said.

Police said a forensic team visited the spot and collected samples from the crime spot. Two teams have been formed to track down the accused, and raids are underway to apprehend him.