A day after a video showing a 25-year-old man being struck by an SUV in Noida’s Sector 53 went viral, the station house officer (SHO) of Sector 24 police station and the in-charge of the Gijod police outpost were suspended for failing to report the incident to senior officers and for not making timely efforts to arrest the suspects, senior police officers said on Wednesday.
The black Mahindra Thar used in the assault was later traced and seized, police added.
In a statement, Noida police said SHO Shyam Babu Shukla and sub-inspector Jagmohan Singh were suspended “with immediate effect” for suppressing information and showing negligence. “Their conduct reflects indiscipline and a disregard for official responsibilities. Taking serious note, police commissioner Laxmi Singh has ordered a departmental inquiry,” the statement said.
Deputy commissioner of police (Noida) Yamuna Prasad confirmed the SUV had been seized. “Multiple teams are working to trace the suspects seen in the video,” he added, without disclosing how the vehicle was located.
A senior officer said the Thar was abandoned in the Gijod area after the assault. “We tracked it using CCTV footage. It’s possible the suspects have left the city,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.
He added that Saurabh Yadav, the victim, also has a case registered against him at Beta 2 police station. “We are checking the criminal background of all individuals involved.”
The attack followed a dispute over a message allegedly sent by Akash Awana to the female friend of a man named Ayush. A fight broke out between two groups—Saurabh, Sumit Yadav (his brother), and Ayush on one side, and Akash, Aman Awana, Gaurav Chouhan, and Kunal Chouhan on the other—around 4pm on Monday.
During the clash, the Thar, allegedly driven by Akash, struck Saurabh from behind, flinging him into a roadside drain. The incident was captured in a 28-second video filmed by his brother and later verified by police.
Despite the registration of a case under sections including attempt to murder, assault, and criminal intimidation of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, no arrests were made as of Wednesday night. Police say 15 to 20 people were involved in the attack.