Bengaluru: A group of lawyers and activists came together on Saturday in Bengaluru to release a fact-finding report on the alleged mob lynching of a Muslim rag-picker in Mangaluru in April.
On April 27, Mohammed Ashraf, a 39-year-old resident of Kerala, was allegedly murdered by a mob in Kudupu village, Mangaluru. While the investigation is ongoing, multiple organisations, including the People's Union for Civil Liberties, Association for Protection of Civil Rights, and All India Lawyers Association for Justice, have pointed out lapses in the probe, including delays in filing an FIR and missing names from the report.
It is alleged that Ashraf was killed at a playground, and the accused returned to playing cricket after the incident.
"There have been many investigative and administrative lapses since the incident. Home Minister G Parameshwara claimed that the victim raised 'Pakistan Zindabad' slogans. However, neither the police nor any media outlet had reported such a claim. The complaint only claimed that the accused heard the victim shout ‘Pakistan, Pakistan’ and not ‘Pakistan Zindabad’," said advocate Vinay Sreenivasa.
Members of the aforementioned organisations visited Kudupu to carry out an independent investigation and produce a fact-finding report.
The 164-page document, titled 'Lost Fraternity: A Mob Lynching in Broad Daylight — A Betrayal of the Promise of the Constitution', examines the timeline of events and testimonies from the victim’s family and eyewitnesses, and the socio-political context of Dakshina Kannada.
Speaking at the report’s release, Mavalli Sankar, State Convenor of the Karnataka Dalit Sangharsha Samiti (Ambedkar Vada), pointed to the larger failure of the state administration in ensuring impartial investigations in cases involving oppressed communities.
The group will submit the report to the government next week. It also includes a set of recommendations to the state government, district administrations, and the police on investigation protocols for incidents of communal violence and hate crimes.