In an update to the Parbhani lynching case, the Maharashtra Police on Thursday disclosed that 7 accused who had been booked for brutally beating three minors belonging to the Sikkalkari Sikh community leading to the death of one of them have been arrested by the police. The police also said that three special teams have been deployed to search for and nab 2 more accused booked in the case.
Police official Kapil Shelke from Tadkalas Police Station of Parbhani district stated that the police identified 9 accused in the case and had taken a few of them into custody. Later 7 of them had been arrested.
Releasing a video statement around 4 days after the dreadful incident, Shelke confirmed the incident and said that three Sikkalkari youngsters were beaten by the accused who mistook them as ‘thieves’. “The three were caught by the accused of the village and were brutally beaten by them. They accused the minors of being theft. One of the minors died on the spot while the other two are out of danger and are still at the hospital. Based on the complaint filed by one of the minors, we filed an FIR under section 302 of the IPC and began the investigation,” he said.
परभणी जिल्ह्यात शिकलकरी समाजाच्या मुलाच्या मॉब लिंचिंगच्या दुर्दैवी घटनेला जातीय स्वरूप दिले जात आहे. परभणी जिल्हा पोलीस दलातर्फे आव्हान करण्यात येते की, कृपया सोशल मीडियावरील खोट्या अफवांवर विश्वास ठेवू नका, कोणत्याही धर्म किंवा समुदायाबद्दल द्वेषपूर्ण पोस्ट करू नका. pic.twitter.com/AEKX04Meob
— परभणी पोलीस – Parbhani Police (@Parbhani_Police) May 31, 2023
The FIR in the case has been filed under sections 302, 307, 341, 143, 147, 148, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code and section 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951.
The officer also meanwhile added that ‘rumours’ were being spread that people from a specific community had launched an attack on the minors which is untrue. “It is being spread that people from a specific community hit the minors. But during the investigation, we found that all the accused are not from the specific community. The accused hit them because they thought the minors were thieves. This was not a deliberate attack by people of a specific community towards the Sikkalkari youths,” he added.
Earlier, Parbhani SP Ragsudha had revealed that the police were informed about the incident at around 3:15 am on May 27. The police were informed saying that three ‘thieves’ were caught by locals in the Ukhalad village of Parbhani district. “We reached the spot to see that the three Sikkalkari minors were beaten and had sustained severe injuries. The Police admitted the victims to the government hospital where the doctors declared one of them dead. The other two are injured and serious. They are being treated,” SP was quoted as saying.
Parbhani SP Ragsudha R conforming police action in Parbhani lynching case from OpIndia Videos on Vimeo.
Victim says incident happened in Muslim dominated area, near Idgah
It however remains worth noting that relatives of one of the victims have informed OpIndia that the incident happened in the Muslim-dominated area near the Idgah in the village. The relative also said that all the accused who hit the minor boys belonged to the specific community and was leading the mob.
“The accused persons made an announcement from a speaker and gathered the crowd before assaulting the minors. They (Muslims) made an announcement claiming that the minors were thieves. ‘Chor aye chor aye,’ someone from the speaker yelled. The announcement was made from the speaker from atop the Masjid or some nearby playground and not from any other religious place,” the relative confirmed.
Also, the FIR copy obtained by OpIndia states that one of the accused who led the assault has been identified as Akram Patel. The victim in the FIR mentioned, “They poured spicy chutney into our eyes. They also broke our left arm and left leg. Later, one of them asked Akram regarding action to be taken against us. Akram then ordered saying- Maro salon ko (kill them).”
Therefore, while the police say the accused are from all communities, it is pertinent to note that according to the victim’s family and the FIR, the mob was initiated and led by one Akram Patel.
What is the case?
On May 27, three minors belonging to the Sikkalkari Sikh community had gone to catch the pigs. While on their return at 3 am, they were blocked by Akram Patel and 5-6 other men from the Ukhalad village of Parbhani district. The locals thought that these minors were thieves and so they brutally assaulted the minors. The minor victims in the case were identified as Arunsingh, Gorasingh and Kripalsingh.
The accused used iron rods and sharp weapons to attack the minors. They hit on their heads resulting in severe injuries to Arunsingh and Gorasingh. Kirpalsingh however fell unconscious after being attacked by the accused and was later declared dead by doctors at the government hospital. The other two are serious at the Parbhani government hospital and are being treated well.
The FIR has been filed under sections 302, 307, 341, 143, 147, 148, and 149 of the Indian Penal Code and section 135 of the Maharashtra Police Act, 1951. Further investigations into the case are underway.
