New Delhi: The Ghaziabad police have arrested three persons for allegedly beating a man to death near a temple. According to an Indian Express report, the victim was assaulted “over the suspicion” that he was eating non-vegetarian food, though police have denied this was the reason.The victim, Praveen Saini, along with two of his friends, Devendra and Vinod, was having food at the Gangnahar ghat when they were approached and confronted by the accused and subsequently an argument ensued, police officials said. “The accused were in a drunken state and began creating a ruckus before beating Praveen and his friends with sticks and rods, inflicting serious injuries,” Kamlesh Narain Pandey, Circle Officer, Sadar, said.Police officials also added that the victim was eating soya chaap with roti and not consuming non-vegetarian food. When the accused approached the three men, they showed them the packet and told them that they were eating vegetarian food.“The restaurant bill clearly states they were having soya chaap and onions with roti. We have CCTV footage which shows the two groups arguing for nearly half an hour before the assault,” said Pandey.Iraj Raja, superintendent of police (rural) Ghaziabad, however, told the Indian Express that the argument was not over what the victims were eating. “There is no evidence of any conflict over the food they were eating… The accused were checked by the victims because of which the violence ensued. It was Praveen and his friends who had attacked Nitin, to which the accused retaliated and the assault then escalated. All three accused have been arrested,” Iraj said.The main accused, Nitin, is posted in the Army and was on leave at the time of the incident, police said and added that the two other accused have been identified as Aakash and Ashwini. The accused fled the scene of the incident on a scooter after the assault, police said.The victim, Praveen Saini, was from Meerut and worked in the temple and nearby shops as a cleaner.