MEERUT: A frenzied mob lynched a man and critically

his friend over rumours of

in Hapur’s Bajhera Khurd village on Monday evening. A video of the purported incident surfaced on Tuesday in which unidentified voices can be heard justifying the attack, terming it “punishment for cow slaughter”.

The video shows a man with multiple injuries lying in the middle of a field, writhing in pain. He is surrounded by a large group of people, one of whom is heard saying that “there is no need to give him water”.

Police have arrested two men and booked 25 unidentified persons in connection with the case.

Sources said that 45-year-old Qasim and his friend Samaydin, 55, were shooing away a cow and its calf from their field when someone spread the rumour that they were taking the bovine for slaughter. Within no time, a mob gathered at the spot and attacked the two men with lathis. While Qasim succumbed to his injuries a few hours later, his friend is said to be critical.

As the news of mob attack started doing the rounds, tension escalated between communities and senior police officials rushed to the spot to avoid any untoward incident. Heavy force has been deployed in the area to prevent clashes.

Meanwhile, police have denied the cow slaughter angle and have said that it is a case of road rage. “The family of the victim has given us a written complaint stating that the fight and consequent thrashing started after a motorcycle accidentally hit Qasim and his friend. While one person was

, another one sustained injuries. An FIR has been registered against 25 unknown people under IPC’s sections 307 (attempt to murder) and 302 (murder), while two men have been identified and arrested,” Hapur superintendent of police Sankalp Sharma told TOI.

Sharma, however, added that a police team combed the area around the crime scene but did not find any evidence of cow slaughter.

The incident came days after a similar attack took place in Jharkhand’s Godda district where two Muslim men were beaten to death on suspicion of cattle theft last Wednesday.