Delhi's citizens protest at Jantar Mantar against instances of mob lynching in June, 2017 (File Photo) | Photo Credit: BCCL

Key Highlights The engineers were overlooking official railways work when the attack took place Locals suspected them of being child-lifters and took matters into their own hands Once they had thrashed the victims, the locals handed them over to the police

Patna: Yet another instance of mob lynching has come to light from the northern-India, this time, from the state of Bihar where two men were brutally thrashed by locals on suspicion of being child-lifters. The two victims have been identified as engineers working with the Indian Railways.

Going by reports, the engineers were overseeing a railway project in Samastipur district on Tuesday when a few locals spread rumours about them being members of a gang of child-lifters. A group of locals then surrounded the victims and even snatched their mobile phones. It was only after the engineer-duo had been mercilessly thrashed that the mob alerted the local law enforcement officials and handed the victims over to the police.

Following a preliminary investigation, police officials revealed that the two victims were engineers with the Indian Railways. A case was also registered by the victims who are still looking for their missing mobile phones, said police officers probing the matter. Despite multiple cases, the state governments in Bihar is yet to implement any measures to curb incidents of mob violence which are being reported from across the state.

In the course of the past week, over 20 incidents of mob lynchings fuelled by rumours of child-lifting have been reported from the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh. On Monday, a mob of locals in Bahraich district thrashed a 25-year-old man who accidentally stumbled across the Jamvapur village under the influence of alcohol. The mob even attacked police officers with brickbats when they tried to rescue the man. As many as three policemen incurred severe injuries during the rescue efforts said superintendent of police Gaurav Grover.

On Tuesday itself, a 35-year-old man fell victim to the wrath of a murderous mob in Uttar Pradesh's Ballia district. The victim, identified as Pramod Rajbhar, was attacked in Shankarpur Dehri village of Rasda area when he was reportedly having an argument with his sister-in-law. A senior police officer said that no FIR has been registered in this regard since Rajbhar has decided not to file a police complaint.

Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are not the only states where new instances of mob lynching are surfacing each day. One such horrific case had come to light on Monday (September 2) from Jodhpur in Rajasthan where a man was thrashed mercilessly with sticks and rods after locals suspected him of being a child-lifter. Reports had hinted that the murderous mob even tried to detach the victim's nails and fingers with a wire-cutter after brutally tormenting him on the streets.