Agartala: A Muslim cattle trader in Tripura was allegedly lynched by a mob on Wednesday, September 2, after being accused of cattle theft, while his family claims he legally brought it from a local.
The incident took place under the jurisdiction of Kalyanpur police station in Babger village. A local, who claimed to have seen the attack, said trader Jalilur Rahman was surrounded and brutally assaulted by the mob.
Rahman was a resident of the adjoining Ghilatali Market and was on his way to a cattle market at Bagan Bazar on Wednesday after having collected the cattle before dawn, the local said.
His family denied accusations of cattle theft and said he had purchased two head of cattle from local farmer Anukul Debnath a day earlier on Tuesday, delaying pickup due to the weekly market.
“Rahman was taking the cattle from the farmer’s house around 4- 4.30 am on Wednesday, when some residents saw him and accused him of being a cattle thief. He was then surrounded and brutally assaulted,” the local told Maktoob Media.
Beaten up, he managed to call family
He said Rahman collapsed on site after suffering fractured limbs, yet managed to phone his family about the assault. “When his wife and father-in-law rushed towards the spot after receiving the call, they were also assaulted,” the local said.
His wife and two children survive Rahman.
Officials from Kalyanpur police station took the injured Rahman to the Kalyanpur Hospital, where doctors declared him dead on arrival. His family asked about his motorcycle, which he had taken with him to collect the cattle. The police found it at Anukul Debnath’s house, raising suspicion about who moved it after the attack.
A first information report (FIR) has been registered at the police station, as Rahman’s family demands a thorough investigation of the circumstances leading to his death. The family called for strict action against those involved in the assault.
