During Narendra Modi's tenure as Prime Minister of India, which began in 2014, there have been several reported incidents of mob lynchings, particularly targeting minority communities. These incidents have often been linked to accusations of cow slaughter, beef consumption, and religious intolerance.[1][2]
Cow Vigilantism
Many of the lynchings have been attributed to cow vigilantes who have taken it upon themselves to enforce laws against cow slaughter. In some states, the protection of cows, which are considered sacred in Hinduism, has been a significant issue, leading to violent actions against those suspected of harming or consuming cows.[3]
Targeting of Minorities
A significant number of the victims of these lynchings have been Muslims, as well as Dalits (members of the lowest caste in India’s traditional hierarchy). This has raised concerns about rising religious and caste-based intolerance.[4][5][6]
According to Human Rights Watch, "purported animal rights activists allegedly belonging to People for Animals" beat three men to death, after the victims were found carrying buffaloes.[12]
A mob of villagers attacked the home of a Muslim man Mohammed Akhlaq, with sticks and bricks, who they suspected of stealing and slaughtering a stolen cow calf, in Bisahda village near Dadri, Uttar Pradesh. 52 year-old Mohammad Akhlaq Saifi (Ikhlaq according to some sources) died in that attack and his son, 22-year-old Danish was seriously injured.[13]
A right-wing Hindu mob in Udhampur district threw gasoline bombs at an 18-year-old trucker. The mob had incorrectly suspected the trucker of transporting beef.[12]
A mob beat a 22-year old to death, and injured four others, after suspecting them of transporting cows. Police immediately arrested the victims of the attack, accusing them of cow slaughter.[12] Later police said they would investigate if Bajrang Dal was behind the attack.
A Muslim couple was beaten up inside a train by members of Gau raksha samithi in Khikriya railway station in Harda, Madhya Pradesh on suspicion of carrying a bag containing beef.[15]
In the Jharkhand lynching, two Muslim cattle traders were attacked, allegedly by cattle-protection vigilantes in Balumath forests in Latehar district in Jharkhand.[16][17][18] The attackers killed Mazlum Ansari, aged 32, and Imteyaz Khan, aged 15, who were found hanging from a tree.[19]
A group of six men attacked four Dalit men after finding them skinning a dead cow. The four were chained to a car, stripped, and beaten with iron rods.[12][20]
4 dalits including a physically challenged person were beaten up by Bajrang Dal activists in Chikkamagalur district of Karnataka on suspicion of eating beef.[21]
A Muslim family was attacked by a mob on allegation of cow slaughter in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. The victims were arrested on charges of cow slaughter but no case was registered against the members of the mob.[22]
In the Alwar lynching, Pehlu Khan, a dairy farmer from Nuh district of Haryana, was murdered by a group of 200 cow vigilantes affiliated with right-wing Hindutva groups in Alwar, Rajasthan, India. Six others who were with Pehlu Khan were also beaten by the cow vigilantes.[23][24] The state government initially charged the victims with "cruelty to animals" under the state law prohibiting cattle slaughter.[12]
A family of five, including a 9-year-old girl, were attacked and injured; police arrested 11 so-called cow vigilantes in connection with the attack.[25] A video of the attack showed the assailants demolishing the shelter of the family; policemen were visible in the video, apparently unable to intervene.[12]
Three men transporting buffaloes were injured after being beaten by a group stating they were members of the animal rights activist group People for Animals.[26][12]
23 June 2017
Delhi-Ballabhgarh train
1
3
Four Muslims were lynched allegedly over rumors of eating beef.[27][28] According to the police, the victims had arguments over meat with their co-passengers who attacked them with knife.[29]
Two Muslim men were lynched in Nagaon district of Assam on suspicion of stealing cows. While the police managed to rescue the men, both of them died of their injuries.[30]
Three Muslim men were lynched in Islampur, Uttar Dinajpur for allegedly trying to steal cows. A police complaint was made by the mother of the deceased Nasir Haque. According to the Superintendent of Police Amit Kumar Bharat Rathod, the police arrested 3 people and were conducting further investigation.[32]
Usman Ansari, a 55-year-old Muslim dairy owner, was beaten up and his house set on fire by a mob in Giridih district. According to the police, a headless carcass of a cow was found near his house. The police said that they were forced to perform a lathi-charge, and to fire in the air, to rescue the victim, who was later treated in hospital.[33]
Alimuddin, alias Asgar Ansari, was beaten to death by a mob in the village of Bajartand, allegedly for carrying beef. According to Additional Director General of police RK Mallik, the murder was premeditated.[34]
Two cattle traders named Ummar Khan and Tahir Khan were allegedly thrashed and fired at by cow vigilantes. Ummar died on the spot due to bullet wounds, while Tahir was admitted to hospital.[35][36][37]
45-year-old Qasim lynched in UP over cow slaughter rumour [41] This incident was at the center of a sting operation conducted by NDTV.[42] The Chief Justice of India agreed to hear the case based on the sting operation footage.[42]
31 year old Rakbar Khan was lynched by a mob on allegation of cattle smuggling in Alwar, Rajasthan. A police officer was suspended for delaying medical treatment to the victim as he tried to arrange shelter for the cows before taking injured Rakbar to the hospital.[43]
70 year old Kailash Nath Shukla was taking his cattles to another village for treatment, on his way a mob stopped him and assaulted him badly and threw him in a gutter.[44]
A protest against illegal cow slaughter erupted into riots resulting in the death of two; a police officer named Subodh Kumar Singh and a protesting youth.[45][46] Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath described the violence as an 'accident' and denied the occurrence of lynchings in Uttar Pradesh even though the DGP hinted about the possibility of a larger conspiracy behind the incident aimed at inciting communal violence in the area.[47]
A Muslim man was harassed, humiliated, insulted and beaten by the mobs over beef. The mob suspected 68-year-old Shaukat Ali of selling beef and cornered him, thrashed him, and proceeded to force-feed him pork.[48]
A Muslim man, Nayeem Ahmed Shah, 50, was shot in the head and died on the spot while another, Yasin Hussain, was injured by "cow vigilantes" over cow-smuggling while families of both denied any animal was carried out by any of them. Soon after the killings protests erupted, with protesters demanding justice while damaging five vehicles, setting afire a three-wheeler. Police used batons, tear gas and imposed curfew to prevent the religious riots. Police arrested two people in connection with the arson incident and 7 were being detained for questioning.[51][52][53]
A couple and two men were thrashed by a group of vigilantes for allegedly carrying beef in an auto-rickshaw at a village in Madhya Pradesh. In a video of the incident shot by an eyewitness on a mobile phone, the assailants also forced one of the men to beat up the woman accompanying them. The woman was seen being hit repeatedly with a slipper on the head and covered with a piece of cloth, as she curled up on the gravel and endured the blows in silence from the attacker.[54][55][56] The police learned of the incident after "two" days that was also only because of viral videos on Twitter and other social media sites.[54] Police arrested both suspects and victims as according to police, victims did not sustain any "serious" injuries and the cow vigilantes had informed them that victims were allegedly carrying 150 kg of red meat in an auto rickshaw and a two-wheeler from Khairi village, police seized the meat, the three-wheeler and the scooter and sent them to Judicial Custody for Allegedly Carrying Red Meat as possession, transportation or sale of beef is illegal in Madhya Pradesh.[57][54] Five suspects were also arrested under IPC Sections 143, 148, 149, 341, 294, 323 and 506 and also Section 25 of the Arms Act.[57] The incident and the behavior of the police faced wide condemnation and backlash by some Indian politicians and people.[54][57][58]
Four including two Muslim labourers were beaten by Mob for allegedly eating meat. Surviving labourers said they were eating vegetarian food. Police started their investigation to arrest the attackers.[59][60]
The driver of a truck carrying bones was attacked a mob. Police reached the spot on time and rescued him from lynching. Cow vigilantes opposed the police action and demanded they hand over the driver, also threatening the police officer would be removed from service and face dire consequences.[61]
Two men were beaten and thrash by cow vigilantes in Gurgaon, Haryana. The men were admitted to a civil government hospital in Gurugram and later referred to Rohtak Medical College.[62][63]
A driver was assaulted by five persons, including a woman, they broke the windows of the vehicle, overturned it and disrupting traffic, who were later arrested by the police. The driver was transporting carcasses of dead cattle to disposal plant in Chhajarsi village but the cow vigilantes were spreading fake news about cow slaughter to the crowd which created ruckus.[66]
Thirteen persons have been arrested for their alleged involvement in the lynching of two men on suspicion of cattle smuggling in West Bengal's Cooch Behar district.[71][72]
The driver identified as Mohd Hanif was tied with the tempo on which he was carrying the cattle and beaten by a mob of cow vigilantes on the roadside. The vigilantes also damaged the tempo. Reportedly, the men belonged to Bajrang Dal.[73][74][75]
Mohammad Shakir was allegedly transporting buffalo meat on a scooter when a group stopped him and demanded ₹50,000 from him. Afterwards, he was beaten with sticks. The police later filed an FIR against the victim.[76]
A 50-year-old truck driver, identified as Mohammad Shera, was shot dead and his seven associates assaulted by a mob alleging that the victims were smuggling cows.[77]
Babu Bheel and his associate were carrying bulls in a truck and were assaulted by suspected cow vigilantes with sticks and other weapons. According to preliminary investigation, the bulls were purchased for farm use.[80]
A 23-year-old man named Lukman Ansari was reportedly lynched by a group of cow vigilantes, commonly known as ‘gau rakshaks,’ in Maharashtra’s Nashik district.[83]
On 18 June 2024, the police reported that a 35-year-old man was lynched by a mob in Mama Bhanja locality on Tuesday, following suspicions of theft. The victim was identified as Mohammed Farid, also known as Aurangzeb.[86]
22 June 2024
Anand, Gujarat
1
A twenty-three-year-old Muslim man named Salman Vohra was beaten to death by a mob during the final match of a cricket tournament in the Chikhodara village in Anand district of Gujarat.[87]
24 June 2024
Dantewada, Chattisgarh
1
A group of Hindutva attacked on a Cristian family.[88]