Dalit man tied to wooden cot, beaten to death in Jharkhand; mob violence suspected over love affair

DALTONGANJ: A 25-year-old Dalit man was lynched allegedly by a mob on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday at Telyahi village in Palamu district, police said. According to the law enforcers, the lynching could be related to a love angle, but the accused charged him with theft. “We are probing the crime from all angles,” Palamu SP Reeshma Ramesan said.

The victim, Pawan Kumar, was tied to a leg of a wooden cot and beaten up. One person has been detained in connection with the crime.

Parwa police station officer-in-charge Anchit Kumar said they received a call around midnight alleging that a youth was being beaten up on suspicion of attempting to steal a tractor battery. A patrol team reached the village and found Kumar tied up and surrounded by an aggressive mob. Police rescued him and rushed him to the Medinirai Medical College and Hospital in Daltonganj around 4.06 am, where the doctors declared him dead on arrival.

SP Ramesan said no battery was recovered from the victim and described the theft allegation as “unfounded” and a “deception” meant to mislead the police. The investigators are probing a possible “love angle,” as Kumar was allegedly called to the spot by a girl.

Police sources suspected the killing may have been linked to a personal relationship and could involve members of the girl’s family and their associates. Kumar, a resident of nearby Kokarsa village, was allegedly lured to Telyahi.

An FIR was lodged by the victim’s father, Manoj Ram, with Parwa police station in connection with the incident. The case has been registered under Section 103(2) of the BNS, which pertains to mob lynching. Police have withheld the names of the accused, saying they could abscond.

Under the direction of the District Legal Services Authority chairman, Ram Sharma, who is also the principal district and sessions judge, para-legal volunteer Pankaj Pathak will visit the family to initiate and provide interim victim compensation. DLSA secretary Rakesh Ranjan said the family would receive legal assistance.The post-mortem was video-graphed.

The victim, Pawan Kumar, was tied to a leg of a wooden cot and beaten up. One person has been detained