Mob Kills Muslim Man in India on Suspicion of Carrying Beef: Report
Naseem Qureshi, a resident of Hasanpur village in the state's Saran district, was travelling with his nephew Firoz Qureshi to meet some acquaintances when they were intercepted by the mob at Jogia village, about 110 km from Patna, on Tuesday, The Print reported.
According to the police, while Firoz Qureshi managed to escape, his uncle was beaten with wooden sticks.
Firoz Qureshi claimed that the local sarpanch Sushil Singh was also part of the mob.
“They stopped our moped and the sarpanch alleged that we were carrying beef and ordered the men to thrash us,” he said, according to the report. “I escaped somehow by outrunning the men who chased me.”
The police said the mob themselves handed over Naseem Qureshi to the police, following which he was rushed to the hospital in Siwan but died during treatment on Wednesday.
They added that a first information report under Sections 302 (murder), 34 (act done by several persons with a common intention) and 379 (theft) of the Indian Penal Code have been registered.
Three persons – Ravi Sah, Ujwal Sharma and Singh – have been arrested in connection with the case, while two others are absconding, according to NDTV.
“We are treating it as a case of mob lynching,” Saran Superintendent of Police Gaurav Mangla told ThePrint. “It is under investigation whether Naseem was carrying beef or not at the time of the incident.”
Meanwhile, Naseem Qureshi's brother, Ashraf Qureshi, accused the police of protecting those involved in the incident.
“The local police are trying to save the guilty,” he told The Print. “The police took my brother, who was seriously injured on a motorcycle instead of an ambulance.”
Mob lynching and violence in the name of cow protection are very common in India. In the last few years, the country has witnessed brutal killings in the name of cow protection, by right-wing groups. However, here have been convictions in only a handful of cases.
Slaughtering cows - venerated by Hindus - is illegal in a number of Indian states.
Source: dhakatribune.com
