‘Are you a Bangladeshi’: As video of Chhattisgarh man’s lynching in Kerala comes to light, CPM govt calls it fallout of ‘Sangh’s hate politics’

It was on Wednesday evening that Baghel, who had reached Palakkad four days back in search of a job, was brutally attacked by a mob. Baghel, who was staying with his relative near Attappallam under Wayalayar police limits, reportedly lost his way and got stranded in the village where he was suspected of theft.

The visuals of him being questioned and attacked were caught on a phone. A postmortem report found that he had died due to loss of blood from internal injuries.

As relatives of the murdered youth refused to claim the body, revenue minister K Rajan on Monday held discussions with them and assured that the family would be paid “not less than an amount of Rs 10 lakh”. A decision in this regard will be taken at the next cabinet meeting, he told the media in Thrissur after the meeting.

The state will also facilitate sending the body by air to Chhattisgarh.

Palakkad Superintendent of Police Ajith Kumar said a special investigation team has been formed to probe the case. “Five persons have been arrested, and a probe is on to verify the involvement of more people. The district crime branch Deputy SP will head a 10-member team. Relevant sections of the SC/ST Atrocities Prevention Act will be included in the offences against the accused once the victim’s caste details are verified,” he said.