Mistaken for thief, Dalit man lynched in Raebareli: Police         

A 40-year-old Dalit man was allegedly lynched by villagers who mistook him for a thief during a night vigil amid rumours that a gang was using drones for surveillance to mark houses for robberies, police said on Monday.

Five people have been arrested in the case and three police personnel suspended for alleged negligence, they said, adding that the accused come from different social backgrounds, including Dalits and backward castes, and appealed to people not to spread any caste-related rumours about the incident.

The deceased was identified as Hariom, a resident of Fatehpur district.

According to the police, residents in several villages in the Unchahar police station area have been keeping night vigils following rumours that drone surveillance was being used to orchestrate thefts.

On Wednesday night, some villagers became suspicious after seeing a man moving near the Jamunapur crossing and started questioning him, the police said. When the victim failed to respond to their queries, the villagers allegedly thrashed him brutally, suspecting him of being a thief.

Eyewitnesses told the police that the mob dragged the victim to the Ishwardaspur railway station and left him there in a critical condition.

On Thursday morning, villagers found his body lying near the railway track, according to the police. His clothes were torn, and there were multiple injury marks on his body.

The police said by the time they reached the spot, the man was lying in a pool of blood and had succumbed to his injuries.

Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Sanjeev Sinha said a case of murder has been registered, and five accused have been arrested.

Efforts are on to identify and arrest the remaining culprits, he added.

Sub-Inspector Kamal Yadav and constables Pradeep Kumar and Abhishek Kumar have been suspended for alleged negligence, Sinha said.

He said the accused come from different social backgrounds, including Dalit and backward castes, and appealed to residents not to spread any caste-related rumours about the incident.

He urged the public to maintain peace and cooperate with the police, assuring strict action against those involved in the killing.

Meanwhile, the Congress on Monday said the incident shows that the state's law and order has "completely collapsed" and demanded Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's resignation as well as an SIT probe into it.

The opposition party also demanded compensation of Rs 1 crore for the victim's family and a government job for one of its members.