11 sentenced to life imprisonment in the Alimuddin Ansari lynching case

A Jharkhand court has sentenced, 11 people convicted in the lynching of Alimuddin Ansari, to life imprisonment today. Earlier on March 16, a fast-track court had found the men guilty under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) ((please hyperlink: https://cjp.org.in/local-bjp-leader-among-11-convicted-in-alimuddin-ansari-lynching-case-in-jharkand/ )), including Section 302 (murder) and Section 120B (conspiracy) – indicating that the court was convinced that the attack was pre-meditated. The men were also found guilty under sections 147 (rioting), 148 (rioting with a deadly weapon), and 149 (unlawful assembly). Those convicted include a local leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and at least three members of the local ‘gau raksha samiti’.

Alimuddin Ansari, ((please hyperlink: https://cjp.org.in/victims-of-gautankwad-alimuddin-ansari/ )) a 45 year old coal trader, was killed by a mob of hundred on June 29, 2017 in Jharkhand, on the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally broke his silence on lynching in the name of cow protection. Ansari was targeted for allegedly carrying beef in his van. He was ambushed by the mob, who beat him repeatedly with sticks and pieces of meat, and set his car ablaze. Some members of the mob had been keeping tabs on him since early morning when he allegedly purchased the meat. They also constantly gave their accomplices updates about Ansari’s location in real time and even followed him for 15 kilometers. Ansari reportedly did not fight back at all.

Although the prosecution in the case reportedly called for the convicts to be awarded the maximum punishment, Mariam Ansari, Alimuddin’s widow, ((please hyperlink: https://cjp.org.in/want-justice-not-revenge-mariam-ansari/ )) categorically stated that she did not believe in retribution and did not want the convicts to be given the death penalty. The court has ordered the District Legal Services Authority guarantee that the victim’s family is adequately compensated. Ansari’s family reportedly said they are satisfied with the verdict and are only seeking compensation because Ansari was the family’s sole bread winner.