In recent years, India has seen a disturbing rise in mob lynching incidents. Lynching, an extrajudicial killing by a group of people, often escapes punishment due to the collective nature of the crime. The severity of these crimes led Union Home Minister Amit Shah to announce last December that the new criminal laws would include the death penalty provision for mob lynching. Despite these measures, justice remains elusive for many victims.
One such case is that of Pehlu Khan, who was brutally attacked by around 200 cow vigilantes on the Jaipur-Delhi National Highway in 2017. Yogendra Khatana, the Additional Public Prosecutor in the Pehlu Khan case, recounted the incident.
"On 1st April 2017, Pehlu Khan, a resident of Jaisinghpura within the Nuh-Nevada police limits in Haryana, was admitted to Kailash Hospital in Behror," Khatana said. "Pehlu Khan gave a statement to the police, saying, 'My sons Arif, Irshad and I were bringing cows from Jaipur. Near Behror, more than 150 people stopped us and started beating us.'"
Despite being admitted to the hospital, Pehlu Khan succumbed to his injuries on April 3.
Pehlu Khan's son, Irshad who was present during the horrific incident stated that despite having all the necessary documents to prove they were transporting cows for dairy farming, including receipts of sale and purchase, the mob tore up the papers and mercilessly attacked Pehlu Khan in front of his son.
"All Accused Were Given 'Benefit of Doubt' and Acquitted by the Court"
Yogendra Khatana explained, “Despite the brutality of the incident, all the accused were acquitted by the court on the basis of ‘benefit of doubt.’”
The local police had filed a chargesheet against seven people, which led to the trial. "The Supreme Court gave special powers to ADJ 1 Alwar to handle mob lynching cases, so the file was transferred from ADJ Behror to ADJ 1 Alwar," Khatana said. "As a public prosecutor, I managed 44 witnesses and presented 118 documents in court. We exhibited all the photographs related to the crowd provided by the police and brought every possible piece of evidence."
On August 14, 2019, Judge Sarita Swami delivered the verdict, acquitting all seven accused. The court's judgement criticised the investigating officers for their inadequate handling of the case.
Mob lynching in India often targets people across different religions. A recent victim, 24-year-old Anil Kumar, was beaten to death in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh. His mother, Meena, recounted the tragic incident.
"I slept after feeding him a roti. He said he would be back soon. In the morning, I saw him dead on the road in front of the white gate," Meena recalled. "I was going to my daughter’s place and saw a corpse covered in mud. It was Anil. I tried to wake him, but his eyes wouldn't open. Someone had killed him. I told the children, 'Anil has been killed.' The police were called, and they took mud samples from the location."
Despite the brutality, many perpetrators of this incident still remain free. Meena recounted the brutal killing of her son. "Anil was beaten in the most inhuman and cruel way possible," she said, adding that many of the attackers are still free.
When asked about the motive, Meena replied, "The police told us that the furniture people killed him. Nine people were involved, and three have been arrested. They hit him very badly... they broke his body."
Just like Anil's family, many families of mob lynching victims continue to seek justice in various courts of the country. Manu Sharma, who lost his brother Rinku Sharma in 2021, shared the events leading to his brother's death.
"When the Prime Minister announced the Ram Mandir, we took out a Shobha Yatra. On August 5, after the yatra ended, there was a heated conversation with some people over a small issue related to religion, but we didn't respond much," Manu explained. "Later, when they saw Rinku standing alone, they encircled and attacked him with sticks and weapons. All of this is captured in the CCTV footage. The case is ongoing in court, and the videos and footage show everyone holding weapons and sticks."
Many families of mob lynching victims assert that justice is nearly impossible to obtain. They face significant challenges in getting perpetrators arrested, and even when arrests are made, the accused often secure bail easily. Manu Sharma shared his frustration.
"There were ten accused in my brother's case. Eight of them got bail, although they are banned from coming to Mangolpuri, where we live. The man who stabbed him did not get bail; it was cancelled," Manu said. "Our protest at Jantar Mantar was due to the fact that almost everyone got bail, and they said that two years have passed since the incident and long time has passed with the accused in jail. If, in two years, people can kill someone and just get away from jail, is this not sending the wrong message to society?"
In 2018, the Supreme Court issued several directives to the Union and state governments to prevent mob lynching. Recently, the Supreme Court reviewed cases where mob lynching incidents were recorded by the police as brawls or accidents. The apex court also sought reports from the states on the steps taken in these cases.
Social activist Shabnam Hashmi stated that what we are witnessing in the country today are cases of institutionalised mob lynching. "Lynching did happen earlier, but they were very rare and far between," Hashmi said. "Since this government came to power, it has unleashed attacks on minorities by non-state actors who are emboldened because they know nothing will happen to them. They are supported by the present regime, and one doesn't expect any action while this government is in power. Attacks on minorities, Dalits, and women have increased manifold because this regime preaches violence. Those who openly call for the genocide of Muslims and Christians face no repercussions, while human rights activists like Gauri Lankesh are killed, and others like Umar Khalid languish in jail."
Hashmi emphasised that the Indian Penal Code has enough provisions for victim protection and sentencing those spreading violence and hatred, but the lack of will and implementation renders these laws ineffective.
The issue of mob lynching extends beyond mere acts of violence. Families who have lost loved ones are still fighting for justice years later, while perpetrators remain free. Mob lynching crimes do not happen in isolation; for every such crime, often there are silent spectators who do nothing to stop the lynch mobs. These cases highlight the deep-seated prejudices and systemic failures that allow such heinous acts to occur and go unpunished in our country.
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