In a shocking incident, two men were attacked by a frenzied mob on Monday, June 18, in Uttar Pradesh's Hapur, about 70 km from Delhi. One of them was beaten to death while the other was critically injured. The attack is said to have been allegedly fueled by rumours of cow slaughter.
The incident came to light when 45-year-old Qasim and his injured friend named Samayuddin were brutally thrashed after allegedly having an argument with bike-borne men in Pilakhuwa village.
If reports are to be believed, Qasim and Samayuddin were shooing away a cow and its calf at a field. Seeing this, a mob spread rumours that the duo was taking the cow for slaughter.
Following this, a mob soon rushed to the spot and attacked them with lathis. A video was also shot of the two men writhing in pain as several people were seen standing around, making no effort to help the injured.
Samayuddin was soon rushed to a nearby hospital where he is said to be in critical condition.
According to the police report, the murder is said to be a road rage issue rather than cow slaughter lynching. "Two people were passing through the village on a motorcycle. They fought with some locals over the right of way. After that, they were assaulted and one person died. The FIR filed by the family says the motorcycle of the two men collided with another one and that led to an argument," a senior police officer, Pawan Kumar, was quoted as saying by NDTV.
Soon after the attack, police personnel was soon deployed to avoid further clashes into the area.
This is the second incident of mob violence in the country that has led to a death in less than a month. On June 8, in the Kabri Anglong district of Assam, two young men were brutally thrashed to death by a mob of villagers over rumours of child lifters in the area. The deceased were identified as Niloptal Das, a musician based in Goa, and Abhijeet Nath, a businessman from Assam.
