A 31-year-old migrant worker from Chhattisgarh was tragically lynched in Kerala's Palakkad district after being falsely suspected of theft while appearing mentally disoriented. (File)
Four days after reaching Kerala in search of a job, a migrant worker from Chhattisgarh was beaten to death in Kerala’s Palakkad district on Wednesday, on suspicion of theft.
The victim, identified as Ramnarayan Baghel (31), was subjected to questioning, which was recorded in mobile by one of the assailants, before being brutally assaulted at Attappallam village under Walayar police limits. On Friday, police arrested five persons on charges of murdering Ramnarayan, a native of Champa district in Chhattisgarh. He is survived by wife and two minor children.
On Thursday night, police arrested alleged accused Anu, 38, Prasad, 34, Murali, 38, Anandan, 55 and Bipin 30. They are all locals engaged in sundry jobs and a court sent them to judicial custody on Friday.
Quoting the preliminary postmortem report, investigating officer Inspector N S Rajiv said the migrant worker died due to loss of blood from internal injuries. After the postmortem at government medical college hospital in Thrissur, the body has been kept in a mortuary. His family wanted to take the body back to their home state, he said.
The Inspector said a few among the five arrested persons have a criminal background. “We are looking into whether more people were involved in the attack. The assailants have also recorded the assault and questioning of Ramnarayan on a mobile phone,’’ he said.
According to the victim’s brother Sasikanth, who has been working at Kanjikode industrial area, Ramnarayan came to him four days before the incident on Wednesday. “It was his first trip to Kerala and we were staying together. When we went to work, he might have gone out. We did not find him for the next day and we thought he might have gone back. But on Wednesday night, I got a call from the police asking me whether I know this person. They got my number from his pocket during the inquest,’’ he said.
As per the information from local people, Ramnarayan was spotted in Attappallam and nearby areas on Tuesday. He was found wandering as if lost his way. At one house, he bumped into and took drinking water. Although he did not turn violent or attack anyone, people suspected him as a thief.
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According to panchayat member Sivaraman, Ramnarayan was spotted near a group of women engaged in work under the MGNREGS on Wednesday afternoon. When he started rummaging through one of their bags, in which they usually keep meals, these women raised an alarm. “A group of men, who were nearby, rushed to the spot and assaulted him till late evening. They questioned him and recorded the incident on mobile phone. It was a deserted area and hence nobody intervened to stop the attack. He did not steal anything from anywhere. We do not know whether he was looking for food. Late evening around 7 pm, local people alerted police about the injured man lying on the road. They came with an ambulance and took him to the district hospital in Palakkad, where he was declared dead,” he said.
According to the FIR, a doctor on duty at the hospital reported to police that the man had sustained multiple injuries and was bleeding from the nose and mouth. After the doctor indicated that the profuse bleeding might have led to the death, police registered a case of murder under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
George Mathew, chairperson of Progressive Workers Organisation, which works among migrants, said, “The mob attacks on migrant workers are on the rise in Kerala. A special investigation team should be formed to probe this case. The body of the victim should be sent to his home state free of cost. Often, the families of the victims are forced to pay a huge bill for sending the body by air or road,’’ he said.
An official of the state Labour Department said they have very little role to play as the man met with a tragic end before getting a job. “However, on humanitarian grounds, we will try to help the family,’’ he said.
Shaju Philip is a Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, where he leads the publication's coverage from Kerala. With over 25 years of experience in mainstream journalism, he is one of the most authoritative voices on the socio-political, religious, and developmental landscape of South India.
Expertise, Experience, and Authority
Decades of Regional Specialization: Shaju has spent more than two decades documenting the "Kerala Model" of development, its complex communal dynamics, and its high-stakes political environment.
Key Coverage Beats: His extensive reporting portfolio includes:
Political & Governance Analysis: In-depth tracking of the LDF and UDF coalitions, the growth of the BJP in the state, and the intricate workings of the Kerala administration.
Crime & Investigative Journalism: Noted for his coverage of high-profile cases such as the gold smuggling probe, political killings, and the state’s counter-terrorism efforts regarding radicalization modules.
Crisis Management: He has led ground-level reporting during major regional crises, including the devastating 2018 floods, the Nipah virus outbreaks, and the Covid-19 pandemic response. ... Read More
