Mob beats Kerala man to death after spotting him near a woman’s house

A mob allegedly thrashed a 42-year-old man to death in the early hours of Tuesday in Kerala’s Malappuram district after he was spotted near the house of a woman who stayed alone, police said.

Nasser Husain, the victim, was questioned by local people after he was seen near the woman’s house, leading to an argument. The local people then allegedly brutally beat him up and fled when he fell unconscious, police said.

But the victim’s brother alleged the mob fled only after ensuring Hussain’s death. “I begged them to allow me to take him to the hospital but they refused. They even refused water to dying brother saying he never deserved any sympathy,” he said.

The brother said the leader of the gang who attacked Husain did not allow anyone to go near the victim. “He would have been saved if he got timely medical help,” the brother said. Police arrested six persons in connection with the murder.

This is the latest in a string of what is described as moral policing in the state. Two years ago, a young man was killed in a similar incident in neighboring Kozhikkode. He was allegedly lured to a woman’s house in the night and attacked by a group of local people. Last year, a court sentenced five suspects to life in jail.

Last year a higher secondary school girl and her brother were allegedly attacked by a group who suspected that they belonged to different communities.