Patna: The Sitamarhi lynching which saw an 82-year-old elderly Muslim man burnt alive and charred to death during ‘Dussehra’ eve has sent shivers down the spine for such cruel behavior against an elderly Muslim man.
Now reacting to the cruel lynching almost after a month and after the word got out, the Police have arrested 13 people so far and are hunting for six others in connection with 82-year-old Zainul Ansari’s killing which was reported from Bihar’s Sitamarhi region last month.
Things turned ugly during the celebrations of Dussehra in the Muslim-dominated area in Sitamarhi.
Some people threw stones which damaged a Durga Idol which was being taken for immersion.
The frenzied mob which had gathered after the incident targeted the elderly man who was cycling back home after visiting his sister.
Despite warnings from the locals not to cycle any further, he simply brushed aside those warnings saying who would harm an elderly man like me.
But little did he know hatred, rage knows no bounds, it does not even recognize the humanity in the first place.
Zainul Ansari charged body was found hours later after he had reportedly left from his sister’s place.
According to Sitamarhi Police 13 people, including one Chhotu Raut, have been arrested so far and they are on the lookout for six more people identified through video footage and still photographs.
Sitamarhi Town Police station in-charge Shashi Bhushan Singh said, “Chhotu Raut is the one who is seen holding Zainul Ansari’s hand near the spot at Gaushala Chowk where the charred body was found. We have also identified six other youths who could be arrested soon.”
Revealing details into the case, he said most of the arrested youths are in their 20s, unemployed and have no criminal records against them.
“They are locals. Masterminds could be different people who were not seen at the spot,” the officer said.
When Ansari’s son Ashraf was approached he said, “We approached police to make a correction in the postmortem report that wrongly mentions my father’s age as 35… We are relieved that some people have been arrested now. The police must also look for kingpins of the incident.”
Singh said, “We have sent Ansari’s DNA sample for confirmation… We will make a correction in the postmortem report. The doctors had intended to write his age as 85 but incorrectly wrote 35.”