Police on Sunday arrested four people and detained one minor in connection with the lynching of a Dalit man in Rajasthan’s Hanumangarh district.
The incident took place on October 7 in the Prempura area of Hanumangarh, where the accused beat Jagdish Meghwal to death, allegedly because of his relationship with a woman. The accused also shot a video of the beating in which they are seen giving water to the victim to drink and then thrashing him repeatedly with sticks.
Meghwal had gone to meet the woman at her rented lodging in Suratgarh, where she was living after being separated from her husband, news agency PTI reported.
Suspecting them of being in a relationship, the woman’s husband and 10 others abducted Meghwal from Suratgarh and took him to a farmhouse where they beat him to death, PTI reported. They later dumped Meghwal’s outside his home.
Police have identified those arrested as Mukesh Kumar Ode, Dilip Kumar, Sikandar and Hansraj.
The district collector of Hanumangarh has announced a compensation of ₹4.12 lakh for the victim’s family, director general of police ML Lather said in a statement.
The incident triggered a political slugfest between the ruling Congress and the opposition, with the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accusing the state government of inaction.
“The lynching of a Dalit in Hanumangarh is very sad and condemnable, but why is the Congress high command silent? Will the chief ministers of Chhattisgarh and Punjab go there and give ₹50-50 lakh to the victim’s family? BSP wants answers or else stop shedding crocodile tears in the name of Dalits,” BSP chief Mayawati said in a Twitter post.
Taking strong note of the incident, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Lal Meena also hit out at the state government. “It is unfortunate that the head of the state is only trying to save his chair, while there are continuous atrocities on the poor, farmers, women and Dalits in the state,” Meena said. “If the accused are not arrested, then I will reach Hanumangarh and bring justice to the victim’s family.”
The ruling Congress, however, refuted the allegations, saying that the Ashok Gehlot government is sensitive towards all sections of society. “Acting swiftly, the police have arrested five accused, and the rest will also be arrested speedily,” said state Congress spokesperson Archana Sharma.
“Before levelling allegations, the BJP should introspect how the law and order situation was during their regime. Those raising their voice on the issue should also show their concern on the Lakhimpur Kheeri incident, where farmers were mowed down,” she said.
This story first appeared on hindustantimes.com