Two sadhus, their driver lynched in Maharashtra’s Palghar over ‘mistaken identity’ 

A policeman looking for evidence at the spot where the three were lynched.

New Delhi: Two sadhus (Hindu monks) and their driver were beaten to death by a mob in Maharashtra’s Palghar district, on Thursday night, while they were travelling in a car from Mumbai to Silvassa. This happened near Gadakchinchale village under Kasa Police’s jurisdiction.

The two sadhus were identified as Chikane Maharaj Kalpavriksh Giri, 70, and Sushil Giri Maharaj, 35. They reportedly belonged to the Varanasi-based Shri Panch Dashnam Juna Akhara.

According to early reports, villagers ambushed the car they were travelling in as rumours spread thieves were on the prowl in the area. They stopped the car, dragged the driver and the two passengers out and started beating them mercilessly with sticks and iron rods.

Gaurav Singh, the police superintendent of Palghar district, while talking to reporters, said, “Our information indicates that the three occupants of the SUV were residents of Kandivali in Mumbai and were going to attend a funeral in Silvassa.”

Videos of the grisly incident shot on mobile phones emerged, which showed the men were beaten to death in the presence of some policemen. In at least one of the clips, one of the victims was seen running towards a policeman present on the spot only to be pushed back to the bloodthirsty mob.

Taking to media, a Kasa Police officer said, “One of our patrolling vehicles spotted the three severely injured men lying on the road and stopped to investigate. However, the mob attacked our team and pelted stones at our vehicle. Our men had to flee and were unable to rescue to the victims.”

He then added, “Prima facie information indicates that the three were mistaken for thieves and attacked. The villagers were on edge due to the ongoing lockdown and unavailability of essential supplies. For the past few days, several rumours have been doing the rounds on social media about thieves and dacoits targeting villages on the highway. As a result, villagers have been patrolling the highway and stopping late-night travellers on suspicion.”

Other reports said they were lynched on the suspicion of being child lifters. In the last couple of years, dozens of people across the country were lynched on the same suspicion fuelled by rumours, especially those circulated on the WhatsApp messaging app.

According to media reports, the two sadhus and their driver, first tried to take the national highway to Dadra and Nagar Haveli’s Silvassa but were stopped by policemen enforcing the coronavirus lockdown. Following this, they seem to have then decided to take the longer route through Vikramgadh in Palghar district.

Meanwhile, the Maharashtra chief minister, Uddhav Thackeray, ordered a probe into the incident and gave strict instructions to the police to nab the perpetrators. According to reports, over 100 people have been arrested in connection with the case, including several juveniles.

The National Human Rights Commission also swung into action over this incident. In a statement, the NHRC said it has called for a detailed report in four weeks, including an “action taken” report from the police. It said, “Based on a complaint in connection with the incident, a notice was issued to the Maharashtra director general of police over the mob lynching of three persons in the presence of police personnel in Palghar district, on April 16.”  The NHRC also said the incident is indicative of “negligence by the public servants” and it amounts to “gross violation of the right to life of the victims”.

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