A 22-YEAR-OLD man died in Assam’s Nagaon district on Wednesday after drowning in a pond while trying to escape from police following a crackdown on a gambling racket over a cricket match. Following his death, a mob pelted stones and ransacked the local police station and a hospital late on Wednesday night over excess police action. Police had to fire in the air to control the mob. Nagaon Superintendent of Police Anand Mishra said, “According to an eyewitness that I spoke to, the youth, ran towards the pond, probably planning to escape. But drowned. There was absolutely no excess by policemen.” Mishra said that two cases have been registered in the incident. “At least 17 people in the mob have been identified as of now,” he added.
