Jharkhand lynching: Tarbez Ansari's father had met the same fate 15 years ago

In an irony of fate, the father of the Jharkhand mob lynching victim was also killed in a similar manner around 15 years ago. Maskoor Ansari, Tabrez Ansari’s father, was caught by a mob while allegedly committing theft in Bagbera area of Jamshedpur and lynched, according to locals. The general secretary of Congress's district unit, Mohammed Mosahid Khan said he had gone to Jamshedpur to bring Maskoor's body back to his village after it was identified. "After all, he was from here," Khan told ToI on Tuesday.

Two elderlies of the village corroborated what Khan said but refused to get identified fearing police investigation. "He, too, was caught by a crowd. He was beaten up and his throat slit. We were here when his body was brought back," said an elderly woman, who lives across the road to Jama Masjid, barely 100 metres from Tabrez's house.
Some people in Bagbera vividly remember the infamous lynching of November 2004. Local leader and social activist Subodh Kumar Jha said, "One day, residents of Ramnagar locality in Bagbera got hold of the man and he was beaten to death by an irate mob," he said as reported by ToI.

Tarbez, a 24-year-old Muslim man, was lynched by a mob in suspicion of theft and seen in a purported video being forced to chant "Jai Shri Ram" and "Jai Hanuman", according to reports. Tarbez was declared "brought dead" by doctors at the Tata Main Hospital in Jamshedpur on June 22.

On June 18, Ansari and two others had entered a house in Seraikela village at night allegedly with an intention to commit theft. Meanwhile, the occupants of the house woke up and raised an alarm, following which villagers caught hold of Ansari and "manhandled" him, while his accomplices managed to flee.

Ansari was found to be in possession of valuables, which he and his associates had allegedly stolen from other villages. However, Tabrez, in the purported video clip, is heard denying the charges till the very end, saying the two other men still those stuffs and he did not know anything about the same.

Tied to an electricity pole, Tabrez, was beaten up mercilessly with wooden sticks for over 18 hours and was later handed over to police. He had been in the judicial custody since June 18 and was taken to a hospital on June 22 after his condition deteriorated. At the Sadar Hospital, he was diagnosed with multiple injuries and was subsequently referred to the Tata Main Hospital in Jamshedpur.

The video in question, circulated widely on social media platforms, was handed over to the police by Ansari's family members and it was being investigated. Ansari's wife, Shaista Praveen, has accused the police of taking the deceased to jail first, instead of a hospital.