Ranchi: In yet another incident of mob lynching in Jharkhand, a tribal man died hours after he was beaten up for allegedly selling beef. The mob also attacked two other men and their condition is stated to be critical, a senior police officer told ThePrint.
The incident took place in Khunti district, around 50 km from state capital Ranchi.
According to the police, a group of 12 to 15 men caught hold of the three men at Jaltanda Suari village early Sunday morning for allegedly selling beef at a riverside market.
The mob came from neighbouring villages after news of alleged cow slaughter spread through text and WhatsApp messages. Seeing the mob approaching, the three tried to run away but were caught, said the officer quoted above.
The police identified the deceased as Kalantus Barla and the injured as Fagu Kachhapand and Phillip Hahoro. All three are tribal Christians.
Five villagers have been arrested so far and raids are on to nab others, said DIG V. Homkar.
The police said they received calls from some villagers, following which they rushed to the spot and rescued the trio. All three were then taken to a local hospital from where two, including Barla, were referred to Ranchi Medical College. Barla succumbed to his injuries in the evening.
“Senior officers are camping at the spot. The district’s SP and deputy commissioner are personally supervising the case. Different teams were formed to nab the culprits. We assure that strict action will be taken against all of them,” Homkar said after visiting the spot.
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Second incident in three months
Barla’s death is the second allegedly due to lynching in Jharkhand in the last three months, with the first victim being Tabrez Ansari who died in June. The incident also comes a month before Jharkhand goes to polls.
Ansari was beaten by a violent mob as he was suspected of theft. He was rescued by the local police after almost eight hours and produced before a court as a thief. He was soon remanded in judicial custody, where he died after four days.
His 19-year-old wife is still fighting for justice, after the police initially dropped the murder charge from the chargesheet, only to add it later after a public outcry.
Also read: Mob lynching criminals will be punished irrespective of caste or religion: Jharkhand CM