A fortnight after the Alwar lynching incident, another person was allegedly lynched by villagers on suspicion of cattle theft this time in a Haryana village, as reported by news agency ANI on Saturday. In the intervening night of Thursday and Friday, the man was beaten to death in Behrola village of Haryana's Palwal district. Two other persons accompanying him fled from the spot.
A case has been filed against three bothers who are accused of beating the man to death and one of them has been arrested.
The body has been sent for post-mortem.
The incident comes just after over two weeks of the Alwar lynching incident. In Rajasthan's Alwar a 28-year-old Muslim man, named Akbar Khan, was beaten to death by an angry mob on the suspicion of being a cow smuggler. The police have arrested two suspects in connection with the case even as the Rajasthan government has assured proper investigation and stringent action.
Reacting to several provocative statements made by right-wing outfits and politicians in the aftermath of the Alwar lynching incident, SP leader Azam Khan urged the Muslims to stay away from dairy business and cow trading for ''the safety of their upcoming generations.''
"My request to Muslims who are in dairy business and cow trading is to stop it for the safety of their upcoming generations. At a time when some politicians are saying that one must face dire consequences of just touching a cow, Muslims should stay away from such trade," Khan said.
Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje had also condemned the incident and assured stern action against the culprits.
Several cases of lynching and mob violence have been reported from across the country in the recent past.
In an attempt to keep a check on increasing incidents of mob lynching, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre is exploring the possibility of making amendments in the Indian Penal Code. Earlier, according to a senior official, the government intends to define mob lynching as a penal offence.
Besides, the government is considering another option of drafting a model law, which can be adopted by states to prevent incidents of mob lynching. The official said that the discussions for the same are in “preliminary state”, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s order directing Centre to formulate a new law.
