In the second “lynching†incident this week, a 20-year-old man who allegedly robbed a woman of her mobile phone was beaten up by a mob of around 20 people in outer Delhi’s Mangolpuri area. Police said the incident took place early on Thursday. The man later died in front of police personnel inside Mangolpuri police station. Police said an ACP-rank officer has been appointed to conduct a vigilance enquiry into the matter.
DCP (outer district) M N Tiwari said they received a PCR call around 3 am that a thief had been caught at Mangolpuri railway station. “On reaching the spot, police found that the alleged thief, identified as Ramesh alias Vishal, had been taken to Mangolpuri police station in a PCR van,†he said.
The woman whose phone was stolen also reached the police station. In her complaint, she told police that she was standing outside her jhuggi around 2.35 am, when four persons on a scooty drove by and snatched her mobile phone. “She tried to stop them but two of the men got down and assaulted her. When she raised an alarm, one of them whipped out a knife and tried to stab her,†Tiwari said.
The woman said some people, who live in the same industrial area and were on their way home, spotted the men assaulting her. “On seeing the crowd, one of the men fled the spot. The other one, Ramesh, tried to attack them with the knife but they caught hold of him and beat him up,†a senior police officer said. The woman said she tried to stop the crowd from assaulting Ramesh but they did not pay any heed to her.
On the basis of her complaint, a case was registered under sections 394, 397 and 34 of the IPC at Mangolpuri. “From the station, Ramesh was taken to Sanjay Gandhi Hospital. During treatment, doctor noticed multiple bruises on his body. He was taken back to the police station and another case under sections 308 and 34 of the IPC was registered,†the officer said. Sources said Ramesh was allegedly beaten up by two policemen and kept in the police lock-up. However, DCP Tiwari refuted the claims and said Ramesh was made to sit in the reception room once he was brought back from the hospital.
“He collapsed in front of policemen. He was taken to hospital where he was declared brought dead,†Tiwari said.
Sources said preliminary medical reports suggested that someone hit him hard on the head and chest, which led to his death. On Sunday night, near Adarsh Nagar railway station, a 19-year-old man was beaten to death by a mob which alleged that he was a thief .
