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| Indian Mob Seizes Prisoner Accused of Rape and Beats Him to Death | Indian Mob Seizes Prisoner Accused of Rape and Beats Him to Death |
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| NEW DELHI — A mob of thousands stormed a jail in the northeastern Indian city of Dimapur, seized a prisoner accused of rape, paraded him through the streets and beat him to death before they could be stopped by police gunfire, a police official said on Friday. | NEW DELHI — A mob of thousands stormed a jail in the northeastern Indian city of Dimapur, seized a prisoner accused of rape, paraded him through the streets and beat him to death before they could be stopped by police gunfire, a police official said on Friday. |
| The dead man, identified by the authorities as Syed Sirf Khan, was accused by locals of being an illegal migrant from Bangladesh and had been arrested on Feb. 24 on suspicion of recently raping a woman from a Naga tribal community. | The dead man, identified by the authorities as Syed Sirf Khan, was accused by locals of being an illegal migrant from Bangladesh and had been arrested on Feb. 24 on suspicion of recently raping a woman from a Naga tribal community. |
| How the mob was able to overcome armed police officers on Thursday at the jail in Dimapur, the commercial hub of Nagaland State, was not clear on Friday. The top police official in Nagaland, L. L. Doungel, said that because there were a number of students wearing uniforms in the crowd, the police did not want to resort to violence. | How the mob was able to overcome armed police officers on Thursday at the jail in Dimapur, the commercial hub of Nagaland State, was not clear on Friday. The top police official in Nagaland, L. L. Doungel, said that because there were a number of students wearing uniforms in the crowd, the police did not want to resort to violence. |
| “There would have been a lot of casualties. That was one reason,” Mr. Doungel said. “The mob was in the thousands.” | “There would have been a lot of casualties. That was one reason,” Mr. Doungel said. “The mob was in the thousands.” |
| Video of the assault that aired on the Indian news channel NDTV showed throngs outside the central jail photographing the event on smartphones. It then cut to blurred images of Mr. Khan, apparently naked, being marched down a street. | Video of the assault that aired on the Indian news channel NDTV showed throngs outside the central jail photographing the event on smartphones. It then cut to blurred images of Mr. Khan, apparently naked, being marched down a street. |
| It was also not clear on Friday how far he was taken before the police stopped the procession, though Mr. Doungel said that it was “quite a distance” from the jail. Eventually, the police fired on the crowd, killing one protester and wounding several others. But by the time Mr. Khan’s body was recovered, he was dead. | It was also not clear on Friday how far he was taken before the police stopped the procession, though Mr. Doungel said that it was “quite a distance” from the jail. Eventually, the police fired on the crowd, killing one protester and wounding several others. But by the time Mr. Khan’s body was recovered, he was dead. |
| A curfew was imposed after the lynching and continued through Friday, with thousands of security officials and state police officers deployed in Dimapur and surrounding areas, according to Mr. Doungel. | A curfew was imposed after the lynching and continued through Friday, with thousands of security officials and state police officers deployed in Dimapur and surrounding areas, according to Mr. Doungel. |
| Residents in several states in India’s fractious and isolated northeast, where much of the population is tribal, have sparred in recent years with an apparently growing nontribal population, many of whom are accused of having migrated illegally from Bangladesh. | Residents in several states in India’s fractious and isolated northeast, where much of the population is tribal, have sparred in recent years with an apparently growing nontribal population, many of whom are accused of having migrated illegally from Bangladesh. |
| Nagaland’s population is close to 90 percent tribal, according to recent census data. The local news media reported on Friday that residents had been demanding that unauthorized migrants be forced out of the state after the accusations of rape against Mr. Khan came to light. | Nagaland’s population is close to 90 percent tribal, according to recent census data. The local news media reported on Friday that residents had been demanding that unauthorized migrants be forced out of the state after the accusations of rape against Mr. Khan came to light. |
| Mr. Doungel said that although a law had been invoked Wednesday night to prevent large-scale demonstrations and gatherings, the authorities had been assured that a peaceful march was being planned for Thursday, so the law’s enforcement was relaxed. | Mr. Doungel said that although a law had been invoked Wednesday night to prevent large-scale demonstrations and gatherings, the authorities had been assured that a peaceful march was being planned for Thursday, so the law’s enforcement was relaxed. |
| The protesters, including the Naga Students’ Federation, were peaceful at first and some submitted a memorandum to district officials asking for the authorities to revoke the trading licenses of any illegal migrants who had set up businesses in the state, among other demands. But some of the marchers later turned violent. | |
| The chief minister of Nagaland, T.R. Zeliang, told NDTV that an investigation of Thursday night’s events had been ordered. | The chief minister of Nagaland, T.R. Zeliang, told NDTV that an investigation of Thursday night’s events had been ordered. |
| Akum Longchari, the editor of the Dimapur-based newspaper The Morung Express, said on Friday that groups in Nagaland were mistaken in focusing on the nationality of Mr. Khan. | Akum Longchari, the editor of the Dimapur-based newspaper The Morung Express, said on Friday that groups in Nagaland were mistaken in focusing on the nationality of Mr. Khan. |
| “It’s just very disturbing,” Mr. Longchari said. “For now, we must concentrate on the complete failure yesterday of the state machinery and how this incident was allowed to happen in the manner that it did.” | “It’s just very disturbing,” Mr. Longchari said. “For now, we must concentrate on the complete failure yesterday of the state machinery and how this incident was allowed to happen in the manner that it did.” |