Two men, suspected to be cattle thieves, were beaten to death by a mob in Jharkhand's Godda
Two men suspected to be cattle thieves have been beaten to death by a vigilante mob in Jharkhand's Godda district. The two were part of a gang of five that entered a village and stole 13 buffaloes but some villagers woke up and raised an alarm after which more people gathered and chased the thieves, police said.
"Villagers caught hold of two of the thieves and started beating them due to which they died", said Godda Superintendent of Police (SP) Rajeev Ranjan Singh.
A case has been registered and four villagers have been arrested, he added.
One of those beaten to death had a criminal background, the other was his accomplice, police told NDTV.
There had been earlier instances of cattle theft in the area, leading to anger among villagers. When the duo was caught red-handed, villagers turned violent and took the law into their own hands.
A chilling video has emerged, capturing the brutality inflicted on one of the men caught by villagers. The man, half conscious with injury marks on his head, is slung over a bamboo pole and dragged. Those gathered keep abusing him, some even recording it in their mobile phones.
Police say investigations are on and action will be taken against anyone found to be involved in the ghastly act.
This isn't the first time vigilante justice has been reported from Jharkhand.
In May last year, six people were beaten to death by mobs in East Singhbhum on rumours that a child stealing gang was active in the area.