Mohammad Iqbal, a 17-year-old Muslim boy was lynched to death by an alleged Hindu mob after he was involved in a bike accident with a Hindu in the capital of Rajasthan, Jaipur.
Iqbal along with his younger brother was returning from his grandmother’s house after attending a function when they met with an accident at around 10 pm on Friday, September 29 near the Gangapol area.
Iqbal endured injuries in the accident but the mob started lynching him after inquiring about his name, local media reported.
The video of the incident that surfaced on social media sites maintained that Iqbal was beaten by the mob with iron rods and sticks which resulted in his death on the spot. The mob that assaulted Iqbal included women too.
He was taken to the Sawai Mansingh Hospital for treatment where he was declared dead.
Iqbal’s family claimed that he faced death because of his religious identity, “otherwise the accident involved 2 parties’. Reportedly the other person involved in the accident was a Hindu named Rahul.
Following the lynching, communal tension sparked between the two communities in the Ramganj-Badi Chaupar area of Jaipur. Muslim shops in the area remained closed in protest. Outraged residents and family members demanded justice for the family.
After the postmortem, Iqbal’s body was handed over to the family and relatives. The family performed the last rites on Saturday evening.
Nayeema Parveen, the deceased’s mother told Maktoob, “I was blessed with Iqbal after a lot of prayers and patience, after 14 years of my marriage and they took him away from me.”
“They took the life of my innocent child without even thinking”, she said. Parveen also demanded the death penalty for the accused.
Syed Abdul Majid, Iqbal’s father said, “He was our very first child. All the accused should be arrested and sentenced to death.”
An FIR was registered by Jaipur police and police have detained 15 people for their alleged involvement in the murder and charged under sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 148 (rioting), 302 (murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), and 341 (wrongful restraint) of the Indian penal code.
Commissioner Joseph told Maktoob that they were “investigating” and the situation was “normal now”.
A delegation of All India Majlis e Ittehadul Muslimeen went to meet the family of the deceased on Saturday and supported the demands of the family.
Kashif Zuberi, a law practitioner in the state who also represents AIMIM said, “We extend all the possible legal help to the family pro bono.”
A cheque of 50 lakhs and a letter to offer a job on a contractual basis to Iqbal’s younger brother Mohammad Adnan has been handed over to the family by the state government, after much outrage.
