Protests erupted in cities across India as people expressed their outrage over the brutal, fatal beating of a Muslim man by a violent mob. The demonstrators called for an end to “lynch terror” and violence against Muslims.

Video footage of the attack shows 24-year-old Tabrez Ansari being beaten with sticks by a group of people while tied to a pole in Kharsawan district in Jharkhand on June 18. He had reportedly been caught stealing and a mob turned on him, forcing him to chant a Hindu nationalist phrase as he was being thrashed.

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Ansari was tortured for 12 hours before the mob brought him to the authorities, claiming he had injured himself by falling during a burglary. Police jailed him and didn’t bring him to the hospital for four days He was pronounced dead soon after arriving at a local hospital.

Jharkhand is a state born out of sacrifices of most oppressed. People like Jayant Sinha, who garland mob lynchers, shouldn't be allowed to insult its proud legacy. As PM said, we should isolate such people & those who back him in Jharkhand, & elsewhere #IndiaAgainstLynchTerrorpic.twitter.com/agyLhxM03t — Umar Khalid (@UmarKhalidJNU) June 27, 2019 People from more than 50 cities came on the streets to protest against hate and mob lynchings.#IndiaAgainstLynchTerror#Lynchistanpic.twitter.com/odpBIbxJsp — عدنان حامد अदनान हामिद (@_adnan_hamid_) June 27, 2019

Police investigating the attack arrested 11 people on Monday, and two officers have been suspended.

Thousands of protesters marching in Indian cities on Wednesday called for an end to lynch mob violence, and demanded the police and the government take action to curb violent attacks. #JusticeForTabrez and #IndiaAgainstLynchTerror trended on social media.

Politicians have also responded to Ansari’s death, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) being accused of encouraging right-wing Hindu nationalism.

The lynching in Jharkhand has pained me. It has saddened others too.But, some people in the Rajya Sabha are calling Jharkhand a hub of lynching. Is this fair? Why are they insulting a state.None of us have the right to insult the state of Jharkhand: PM @narendramodi — PMO India (@PMOIndia) June 26, 2019

Modi called for “the strictest possible punishment to the accused” in parliament, and said it was unfair for people to call the BJP-ruled state of Jharkahand “a hub of lynching.”

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