The Rajasthan police said it has arrested 10 persons till Tuesday for allegedly lynching a 25-year old man in Chittorgarh and severely injuring other on suspicion of smuggling cattle late on Sunday night. Begun circle officer Rajendra Singh said a murder case has been registered against 19 persons including the 10 who have been arrested, and efforts are on to nab the rest.
He said the arrested villagers have told police that they started chasing a pick-up van carrying oxens, believing hearsay that the cattle inside were being smuggled. A crowd of 20-25 people started beating the victims after the vehicle was apprehended.
Though the post-mortem report is awaited, Singh said the deceased identified as Babu Bhil, son of Dhanna Bhil, received injuries on private parts. The other victim Pintu Bhil, son of Var Singh Bhil, is under treatment and recovering.
The incident happened on the intervening night of June13-14, when the two were driving towards their village in Madhya Pradesh after purchasing three oxen from Begun town in Chittorgarh district. They were intercepted near Bilkhanda by a group of locals who were wielding sticks. Police said the purchase of oxen has been verified with the seller.
Rajasthan was rocked by a mob lynching incident in 2017 when a 55-year-old dairy farmer named Pehlu Khan was beaten to death by a mob near Behror in Alwar district on the Jaipur-Delhi national highway. Khan was transporting cows to his hometown Nuh in Haryana after buying them at a cattle fair in Jaipur. The mob thrashed Khan and his son, accusing them of smuggling cattle even though he produced papers to prove that the consignment was legal. Khan died at a private hospital two days later.
{{/usCountry}}Rajasthan was rocked by a mob lynching incident in 2017 when a 55-year-old dairy farmer named Pehlu Khan was beaten to death by a mob near Behror in Alwar district on the Jaipur-Delhi national highway. Khan was transporting cows to his hometown Nuh in Haryana after buying them at a cattle fair in Jaipur. The mob thrashed Khan and his son, accusing them of smuggling cattle even though he produced papers to prove that the consignment was legal. Khan died at a private hospital two days later.
{{/usCountry}}In 2019, the new Congress government led by Ashok Gehlot introduced an anti-mob lynching law in the form of the Rajasthan Protection from Lynching Bill, 2019. Under it, lynching offences were to be tried by a sessions’ court and be cognisable, non-bailable and non-compoundable.
According to the new law, a person who commits an act of lynching will face rigorous life imprisonment and a fine of ₹1 lakh to ₹5 lakh. In case of grievous hurt, the punishment will be jail up to 10 years and a fine of ₹25,000 to ₹3 lakh, and for other injuries, the punishment is a jail term of up to seven years and a fine of ₹1 lakh.