Palakkad lynching: brother alleges Sangh Parivar role, seeks ban on outfits
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The brother of a migrant worker lynched by a mob in Palakkad has accused Sangh Parivar of the killing, alleged communal targeting, and urged the Indian government to impose a ban on groups that attack people in the name of caste and religion.
Ram Narayan Baghel, a 40-year-old from Karhi village in Chhattisgarh, was brutally lynched to death by a mob in Kerala’s Palakkad district.
A construction worker, Ram Narayan, had come to Kerala in search of a job, following his cousin Sashikanth Baghel, who works in Palakkad.
Following the lynching of Ram Narayan, Sashikanth posted a video alleging that his brother was brutally assaulted and killed by Sangh Parivar goons on December 17.
He said that he had appealed to the Kerala government for justice for his brother and had organised protests there with the support of various organisations.
He accused Sangh Parivar organisations, which claim to be great nationalists, of branding citizens of their own country as “Bangladeshis” and assaulting them.
He called on the Indian government to ban organisations that attack and kill people in the name of caste and religion.
Videos circulating online are reported to show members of the mob questioning Ram Narayan about whether he was from Bangladesh. A report filed by the Walayar police is said to record that he suffered multiple serious injuries across his body.
Police have stated that Ram Narayan was allegedly beaten to death on Wednesday after being accused of theft at Kizhakeattappallam near Walayar in Palakkad district. After the post-mortem examination, investigators added murder charges against those involved in the assault.
The following day, police arrested five people in connection with the incident — Anu (38), Prasad (34), Murali (38), Anandan (55) and Bipin (30), all residents of Walayar — and remanded them to judicial custody on December 19.
According to reports, four of the arrested individuals are believed to have links with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).