Vigilantes deliver mob justice in Bihar

Tag: Bamboo Sticks
Ashok Sahni, who belonged to an extremely backward caste, was beaten to death for falling in love with a girl from a different community. He was one of over a dozen people lynched last month, a clear sign that mobs are rushing in to deliver "street justice." The state government’s failure to punish people involved in meting out such instant justice seems to be encouraging them. What’s more, people are being lynched over minor issues. Bihar, India’s second most populous state with 83 million people, has the dubious distinction of being the most crime-ridden as well. More than a dozen ganglords operate in different parts of the state. The semi-feudal society is bitterly divided along caste lines. Sahni, who was in his early 20s, was beaten to death with bamboo sticks and bricks by relatives of the girl in Sedukha Mananpur village in Samastipur district, about 80 km from here. He was attacked after being caught with the girl, police sources said. According to a police report lodged by his father, Sahni was beaten to death instead of being handed over authorities. In another case, a mentally challenged man was beaten to death by a mob in Gotkharik village in Bhagalpur district on charges of trying to administer injections to children. Police said some girl students told the villagers that a man was trying to lure them so that he could administer injections. A group of people attacked him with bamboo sticks, bricks and stones. He was seriously injured and fell unconscious. Some people took him to the house of a village council member. But before police could intervene, he was dragged out and beaten to death. Another man, Mithilesh Singh, was lynched for allegedly attempting to rape a 12-year-old girl in Kelbanni-Dahiyar village in Samastipur district. Singh was caught by the family members and thrashed to death. Nasib Paswan was fatally beaten by the family members of his wife for opposing her alleged extramarital relations in Bhojpur district. A teashop owner, Abdul Qayum, in his 40s, paid with his life for a delay in serving tea to a group of youths in Araria district. People these days justify the act of "street justice." "What is wrong in lynching a criminal or a man trying to outrage the modesty of a girl?" asked Ashok Singh, a businessman. Last year, over three dozen cases of lynching were reported. The worst incident occurred when 10 people from the underprivileged Kueri community were beaten to death over alleged theft. Later, an investigation found that the men were not thieves as the villagers had suspected.