A police official said that the incident was pre-planned. The four, all aged between 18 to 20 years, attacked Khande when the rest of the inmates were asleep. (File photo)Four men, who were sent to an observation home a few years back when they were juveniles, allegedly murdered a watchman of the facility before escaping on scooters stolen from the staff in Chhattisgarh’s Bilaspur district early on Monday.The incident took place at around 2 am at the government-run juvenile observation home situated in Sarkanda area of Bilaspur. The 40-year-old deceased, Narendra Kumar Khande, a Bilaspur resident, was among the ten staffers at the facility which housed around 50 inmates brought there in criminal cases. Khande was the only watchman and there were no security guards, the police said.A police official said that the incident was pre-planned. The four, all aged between 18 to 20 years, attacked Khande when the rest of the inmates were asleep. They first gagged his mouth with cloth and then tied his hands and legs. He was strangled to death, police said.Also Read | Supreme Court flags major lapse by Chhattisgarh High Court: Why a minor just got bail in narcotics caseThe four then picked up the keys of two staffers’ scooters and fled. The four men also took the Digital Video Recorder (DVR) of the CCTV cameras. The matter came to light only at 8 am when other staffers woke up.When asked how the accused, who are adults, were kept at a juvenile home, an official said, “When they were brought here, they were minors. They are kept here till the age of 21,”The mastermind in the case is said to be a 20-year-old man who was to turn 21 years old in a few months leading police to suspect he committed the crime deliberately to escape from the facility before he could be shifted. Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Bilaspur, Rajnesh Singh said, “Three of the accused are residents of Raigarh district, while the fourth one hailed from Korba district. We have registered a case of murder and our teams have been dispatched to find them.”Jayprakash S Naidu is a Principal Correspondent for The Indian Express, currently serving as the state correspondent for Chhattisgarh. With an extensive career in frontline journalism, he reports on the political, security, and humanitarian landscape of Central India. Expertise and Experience Specialized Conflict Reporting: Jayprakash is a leading voice on the Maoist/Naxalite conflict in the Bastar region. His reporting provides a critical, ground-level view of: Internal Security: Tracking high-stakes encounters, surrender programs for senior Maoist leaders, and the establishment of security camps in formerly inaccessible "heartland" villages. Tribal Rights & Displacement: Investigative reporting on the identity and land struggles of thousands of displaced tribals fleeing conflict zones for neighboring states. Governance & Bureaucratic Analysis: He consistently monitors the evolution of Chhattisgarh as it marks 25 years of statehood, covering: Electoral Politics: Analyzing the shift in power between the BJP and Congress and the impact of regional tribal movements. Public Policy: Reporting on landmark infrastructure projects (e.g., mobile connectivity in remote zones) and judicial interventions, such as High Court rulings on civil and family law. Diverse Investigative Background: Prior to his current focus on Chhattisgarh, Jayprakash held reported from Maharashtra, where he specialized in: Crisis & Disaster Management: Notable for his extensive coverage of the Cyclone Tauktae barge tragedy (P-305) and the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on frontline personnel. Legal & Human Rights: Investigative pieces for platforms like Article-14, focusing on police accountability and custodial deaths across India. Environmental & Social Justice: Authoritative reporting on the Hasdeo Aranya forest protests and the approval of major tiger reserves, highlighting the tension between industrial mining and environmental preservation. ... Read More Tags:Chhattisgarh