Indian court sentences 10 men to decade each in jail for lynching death of Muslim man

A court in India sentenced 10 men to a decade each in prison for lynching a Muslim man, who was tortured and forced to chant Hindu religious slogans four years ago.

Tabrez Ansari, 24, was tied to an electricity pole and tortured for 12 hours by the mob in June 2019 after being accused of breaking into a house and stealing a motorbike in the eastern state of Jharkhand.

Videos from the assault showed Ansari being forced to chant 'Jai Shri Ram' (hail Lord Ram) and ‘Jai Hanuman’ (hail Hanuman) – religious slogans appropriated by Hindu hardliners – while he pleaded for his life.

Despite Ansari repeating the chant, the mob kept assaulting him through the night. The local police arrested Ansari the next day for theft.

Ansari complained of nausea and chest pain on 22 June and was transferred to a hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.

The video of the assault triggered public outrage in India, forcing law enforcement officials to arrest 13 Hindu men. Two of the accused were later acquitted due to lack of evidence and one reportedly died during the trial.

The remaining 10 were convicted last week by a trial court on charges of "culpable homicide not amounting to murder". Additional District Judge (One) Amit Shekhar handed the 10-year rigorous prison sentences on Wednesday and fined them Rs 15,000 (£142) each.

The police faced severe criticism for failing to invoke stringent murder charges and taking swift action against the accused. The incident triggered a political row in Jharkhand, with the opposition accusing prime minister Narendra Modi in parliament of being silent on a series of abuses on minorities in India.

Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi described the incident as a “blot on humanity”. Mr Modi, who is the leader of Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, later said he was “pained” by the lynching and the guilty must be severely punished.

Meanwhile, Ansari's family said they will file an appeal in Jharkhand high court for increasing the quantum of punishment for the convicts.

“We had demanded punishment under Section 302 (culpable homicide amounting to murder) but the court overruled it and changed it to 304 of the IPC (Indian Penal Code) on the plea that the injured victim had died after four days," Altaf Hussain, the lawyer for the family, was quoted by local daily The Telegraph as saying.

“We will appeal against it in the high court as he was mercilessly beaten throughout the night with the intention of murder and would like the quantum of punishment increased to life imprisonment."

Critics have accused Mr Modi’s government of turning a blind eye to attacks on minorities, which have been reportedly on a rise since the Hindu nationalist leader became the prime minister in 2014.

There have been similar incidents of lynchings in India where Muslims have been attacked by "cow vigilantes" over rumours that they had eaten beef, or smuggled cows.

Cow slaughter is deemed illegal in many Indian states as the animal is considered holy to Hindus.

The US State Department in its annual report on religious freedom stated that attacks on members of religious minorities took place in multiple states of India throughout 2022.

The report highlighted "continued targeted attacks" on religious minorities, including Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits and Indigenous communities under the rule of Mr Modi's party.