In the 2018 lynching of a Rajasthan man, four were sentenced to 7 years in jail

Rakbar Khan lynching: The mob thought they were smuggling cows.

New Delhi/Alwar:

Four people were sentenced today to 7 years in prison by a Rajasthan court for killing a farmer on suspicion of cattle smuggling in 2018.

Rakbar Khan and his friend Aslam were attacked by a mob of cow watchers in Rajasthan’s Alwar in July 2018. Rakbar was beaten with sticks and stones while his friend managed to escape.

The four men, Dharmendra Yadav, Paramjeet, Vijay Kumar and Naresh Kumar, have been found guilty on charges of manslaughter and undue restraint.

However, one person was acquitted by the court for lack of evidence.

“Nawal Kishore has been acquitted due to lack of evidence against him,” said Ashok Sharma, special prosecutor.

Police had reportedly taken Rakbar Khan to a hospital after moving his cows to a shelter. At the time, the 31-year-old man was dead.

A photograph of Rakbar Khan sitting inside a police car had raised questions about the role of the police in the attack. The photo had been distributed by Naval Kishore, the man who called police about the attack and accompanied them for most of their three-hour drive through the area before Rakbar Khan was taken to hospital.

The incident sparked protests over the alleged delay by the police in taking Rakbar Khan to hospital. A judicial inquiry was also ordered by then-Interior Minister Gulab Chand Kataria, who said the man might have lived if police had taken him to hospital immediately, instead of taking the cows to a shelter first.

Rakbar Khan’s autopsy report stated that he died of shock as a result of his injuries.

“There were injuries on the body… internal bleeding which led to death,” said Rajeev Gupta, one of the doctors who carried out the autopsy.