Nagaland saw a lynching last year too

Months before a rape accused was lynched by a mob in Dimapur and his body hanged in public on March 5, another man had met with a similar fate in Nagaland. On September 18 last year, an irate crowd at Meluri in Phek district had lynched Ibobi Singh, a carpenter from Manipur, accusing him of rape and murder of a minor and later hanged his body at a public place.

Confirming the incident, a senior Nagaland Police official said no arrest has been made in the case so far. “Yes, a man was killed by a mob in Meluri on September 18 last year for allegedly raping and killing a minor. A case was registered and investigation is still on. No arrest has been made so far as all the accused are absconding,” G Akheto Sema, ADGP-Nagaland, told The Indian Express on Wednesday.

Sema said the relatives of the girl and locals had “already caught” the man and killed him before he could have been arrested by the police. Local reports, however, said the mob had attacked police personnel and set their vehicle afire when they tried to take Ibobi in custody.

Sources said the 11-year-old schoolgirl from Meluri went missing on September 17 evening and her body was found the next morning in a forest, about a kilometre outside the town.

Locals reportedly “identified” Ibobi Singh (36) as the culprit, tracked him down when he tried to flee and took him to a public ground, where he was hung to a goal-post and beaten to death.

Source:: Indian Express