Angry Mob In Karnataka Lynch Man Over Fake Rumour Of Child-Abductors

A 32-year-old software engineer was lynched and his friends have been left critically injured after an angry mob in Murki village in Bidar, Karnataka on Friday thrashed them on suspicions of being child-lifters.

According to The Hindu, the deceased Mohammed Azam, along with three of his friends, Talha Ismail, Mohammed Salman and Mohammed Bashir, were travelling by car to Handikera village in Bidar district of Karnataka. Azam, Ismail and Salman all hail from Hyderabad, while Bashir, who works in Hyderabad, had invited them to his native village.

During the drive, they had stopped near Balkut Tanda to get something to eat. Ismail, who had recently returned from Qatar, had offered a few chocolates to some schoolchildren. This led to suspicion owing to fake WhatsApp messages being circulated about child-lifters in the area.

The four men had managed to escape in their car after which they were chased by villagers on motorcycles. The car overturned when it hit the roadblock created by the villagers by felling a tree. The men were assaulted and pelted with stones, despite Bashir trying to explain the situation to the locals. Azam, having been hit in the head, reportedly died on the spot.

The police managed to rescue the other three, and sent them to a local hospital in Bidar, from where they were transferred to Hyderabad on Saturday. IGP Murugan and SP Devraj are expected to visit the village soon, reported The Hindu.

Mohammed Azam was a software engineer, who worked with Google, and was a father of a two-year-old. This is the second case of mob killing in the state, with at least 20 dead in the country since May 2018 due to fake rumours being spread on social media.

We need stringent punishments against those who resort to such acts of violence. To uphold the safety of citizens, law and order need to be established. In the meanwhile, people from all strata of life need to be educated and made aware of the evils of believing in fake news resorting to violence.

Also Read: Two Men Almost Lynched Over Suspicion Of Being Child Kidnappers, Chennai Police Saved Them

Also published on Medium.