The district police have booked around 500 villagers for allegedly disposing off a youth's gunshot riddled body without informing the cops.
An offence was registered against the locals of village Ganje yesterday, PSI AA Sonawane of Manor police station said on Saturday.
"It was on April 13 that the police got a tip-off that one of the villager identified as Sharad alias Charan Ankush Parhad (32), who had gone into the jungle for hunting had died due to a gunshot. We were also told that the villagers had made all preparations to cremate him," said police.
The police rushed to the crematorium but the villagers prevented the cops from reaching near the body, said police.
They drove away the police party and completed the cremation, police said and added that the villagers told the police not to interfere in their affairs and let them do their work.
Police said they are now confirming whether the deceased had died due to a gunshot and further the action would be taken against those responsible for his cremation without intimating them, said the official.