The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday arrested Barkat Ali, the final accused in the 2011 Balli riots case, in which two tribal youths were burned alive.
Ali, who had been absconding for nearly eight years, had settled in Saudi Arabia. Acting on a red corner notice, Riyadh police detained and deported him to India.
Upon his arrival in Delhi, the CBI took him into custody. He was later produced before a district court in South Goa and remanded to judicial custody.
The Goa state government had initially handed over nine cases related to the Balli riots to the CBI.
The agency named Ali in its chargesheet, accusing him and others of unlawful assembly, rioting, and culpable homicide not amounting to murder, among other charges under the Indian Penal Code.
The riots stemmed from a protest by members of the United Tribal Association Alliance (UTAA) at Balli junction on National Highway 17 in May 2011.Despite repeated requests from the South Goa collector and superintendent of police to clear the highway, the protest escalated into violence, resulting in the tragic deaths. (With inputs from agencies.)