Bail granted by K’taka HC to accused in mob lynching of mentally unwell Kerala Muslim
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The Karnataka High Court last week granted bail to one of the men accused in the lynching of Ashraf, a 36-year-old Malayali Muslim man with mental health issues, who was killed during a local cricket match in Mangaluru last year.
Justice Shivashankar Amarannavar allowed the bail plea of Natesh Kumar, listed as the fourth accused in Crime No. 37/2025 registered by the Mangaluru Rural Police, after observing that the investigation had been completed and the charge sheet filed. The court noted that Kumar’s continued custodial interrogation was no longer necessary.
In its order, the court recorded that while some of the accused were alleged to have attacked Ashraf using clubs, others were said to have assaulted him with kicks and blows. Prosecutors alleged that Kumar, along with another accused, had obtained chilli powder, thrown it on the victim and incited others to participate in the assault, Maktoob Media reported.
Kumar’s counsel argued that the allegations did not justify prolonged detention, particularly as a sessions court had already granted bail to several co-accused in the case.
Ashraf, a native of Kottakkal who had been living with his family in Pulpally in Kerala’s Wayanad district, was attacked on April 27 while watching a neighbourhood cricket match near the Batra Kallurthi temple in Kudupu, Mangaluru. He was reportedly working as a scrap collector at the time.
According to the case details, the assault was allegedly led by Ravindra Nayak, the husband of BJP corporator Sangeetha Nayak, and involved members of a Hindutva group known as “Samrat Guys.” Ashraf was allegedly beaten with a cricket bat and other objects until he collapsed.
The accused have claimed that the attack was triggered after Ashraf allegedly raised slogans of “Pakistan Zindabad.” However, his family, along with activists and political leaders, have disputed this version, asserting that the claim was fabricated to justify the violence and give the incident a communal colour.