Indian Court Sentences 14 to Life in 2022 Lynching of Muslim Man

Indian Court Sentences 14 to Life in 2022 Lynching of Muslim Man
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A court in India’s Madhya Pradesh state has sentenced 14 men to life imprisonment for the 2022 lynching of a Muslim man accused of cow smuggling.

The Additional District and Sessions Court in Seoni Malwa, Narmadapuram district, delivered the verdict nearly four years after the killing of 50-year-old Nazir Ahmad, a resident of Amravati in Maharashtra.

The case dates back to August 2, 2022, when Ahmad was travelling in a truck with Shaikh Lala and Sayed Mushtaq while transporting 28 cattle from Nanderwada village. Police said the vehicle was intercepted near Brakhad village by a group of self-styled cow vigilantes armed with sticks and iron rods.

The men were allegedly dragged from the vehicle and assaulted. Ahmad suffered serious injuries and later died, while the two others were wounded.

Civil rights groups and Muslim organizations condemned the killing at the time, describing it as a mob lynching carried out in the name of cow protection.

After the sentencing, relatives of the convicts reportedly protested outside the court and attempted to stop police from taking the men to prison. Police later brought the situation under control.