Pregnant woman dies after being kicked, 4 held

Varanasi: A pregnant woman was fatally assaulted after her neighbours allegedly kicked her during a dispute over an auto-rickshaw that was to be taken to her doorstep in the Pandeypur-Lalpur police station area here. She intervened to protect her husband from the attackers and was brutally beaten.ACP Cantt Nitin Taneja said based on the complaint from the family of the deceased, Sanoli Patel (35), police arrested four accused.Dashmi Patel — who served as a follower at government officials' residences — lives on Hukulganj-Khajuri Road within the Lalpur-Pandeypur police station limits. His wife was five months pregnant. On Sunday, she developed complications after Dashmi summoned an auto-rickshaw. As Sanoli couldn't reach the auto standing on the road, Dashmi tried to bring the vehicle into the narrow street to pick her up from his doorstep. Local traders and neighbours objected to bringing the auto into the lane, sparking an altercation in which Dashmi was assaulted by locals.Seeing this, Sanoli tried to intervene. Her mother-in-law alleged that the assailants kicked Sanoli's womb, leading to heavy bleeding. However, the assailants did not allow Dashmi to take her to the hospital for hours. She was later rushed to a hospital, where she died during treatment.Angered over her death, Sanoli's family members and locals blocked the road on Monday evening and staged a demonstration by placing her body on the road. They demanded the immediate arrest of the assailants. Traffic movement remained disrupted on the busy route. Later, they called off their stir and agreed to hand over the body for post-mortem after the police assured the immediate arrest of the accused.