Hyd mob lynches transgender to death

An unprecedented wave of xenophobia caused by the fake videos and other messages on social media gripped Hyderabad city on Saturday night and claimed the life of a transgender with attacking three beggars in the old city of Hyderabad.

Similar incidents were also reported from other parts of the city as groups of people panicked by fake blood curdling stories and videos of abduction and murder of children turned on the beggars.

Deputy commissioner of police S Satyanarayana said that a group of people attacked the four transgender-beggars in Chandrayangutta area around 1230 am. They were brutally beaten up and stoned by the mob leading to the death of one of them while three others were admitted to hospital, one of them in critical condition.

He said that the police had reached the spot within five minutes. “If the police had not reached all of them could have died”, he told the media. The victim was identified as a transgender Chandraiah from Dearkadra in Mahbubnagar district.

Sometime later, at around 2 am another group attacked three more beggars and injured them. Minor incidents were attacks were also reported from the limits of Hussaini Alam, Madannpet and Kachiguda police stations creating panic across the city and keeping the police on toes.

This is the latest in a series of mob lynching in Telangan and Andhra Pradesh claiming four lives and injuring ten others.

The latest incident came even after the police officials strongly denying the presence of any inter state gang of kidnappers and child lifters any where in the state. Warning the people against taking law in to their hands, the police had stepped up patrolling all over the State.

As the news of the attack spread the area corporator of Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen Ahmad bin Abdat rushed to the spot and tried to save the beggars. He and the Santosh Nagar police inspector were injured in the stone pelting. Such as the fury of the mob that the police could not control the situation.

Police have booked two cases of murder and attempt to murder in connection with the attacks on the beggars as well as injuring two policemen and others.

“26 people were arrested in connection with the incidents and we are looking for some more people”, Satyanarayana told the media on Sunday.

“We have got some video footage of the incident including the footage from the area CCTVs. After identifying the culprits we will arrest them”, the Deputy Commissioner said.

DCP Satyanrayana said that videos of chopping of human bodies by unknown people were not from India but from other countries and some people were circulating  them on social media to create fear among the people. “These are fake videos and we have made it clear that no gang was on the prowl anywhere in the state”, he said.

He said that those found responsible for spreading such videos and messages will be booked for murder if their actions results in attacks and deaths.

Meanwhile police also arrested two youth from Pahadishareef area of Hyderabad for sharing fake video and audios about the kidnapers’ gangs on WhatsApp. The two were identified as Mohammed Ashfaq and Syed Rahim. The video had gory scenes of dead bodies and injured people claiming that they were victims of the gangs.

Area MLA Syed Ahmad Pasha Quadri visited the spot of the incident and urged the people to maintain peace. “There is no truth in the rumors about kidnapping of children. Not a single incident has been reported. The people should not believe in such rumors and respect the sanctity of the month of Ramadan”, he said.

In a statement the Hyderabad city police have urged the people not to share any social media posts regarding inter state gangs entering Telugu states to rob and kill. “State and district police officials have declare it as fake”, it said.