Tired of the highway near their village turning into a 'deathtrap,' residents of Janampet in Telangana clashed with the police for a second time on Tuesday.
The clash was a result of the death of a 52-year-old woman from their village, after she was hit by a van while crossing the Hyderabad-Bangalore highway.
Police slapped non-bailable cases against 70 villagers following the confrontation which occurred during the early hours of Tuesday.
According to a Times of India report, the villagers were infuriated when they came to know about the cases against them, including some on women, and armed themselves with sticks and stones, while challenging the police to dare arrest the villagers that were booked.
Nearly 1400 villagers also blocked traffic on the highway, demanding that they are ensured a safe passage to cross the road as they lose at least two lives a week.
The police had to resort to a 'lathi charge' but even then the villagers refused to move and threw stones at the policemen before finally dispersing after six hours.
“This time we have decided that enough is enough," a youngster from the village told TOI.