Saraikela: For the family of Tabrez Ansari, the latest victim of alleged hate crime in Jharkhand, it is the second time a tragedy of this magnitude has befallen them. Fourteen years ago, Tabrez's father was mysteriously found dead in a jungle near the village.

Tabrez's is the latest name in the list of people who have been singled out and attacked allegedly for their religion. A group of people beat him up on suspicion of theft on June 17. His family alleges a mob thrashed him and forced him to say "Jai Shri Ram" and "Jai Hanuman" before handing him over to the police the next day. Reportedly, the beating left him unconscious. Four days later, on June 22, he breathed his last at Saraikela Karsawan civil hospital, where he was being treated under judicial remand. Videos of the beating are being widely circulated.

For the family of Tabrez, who passed away at the age of 24, his death brings back the memories of his father's mysterious death. In 2005, Tabrez was all of 10 and his sister was eight when their father, Maqsur Alam, passed away.

Tabrez's friend Lukman Ansari told FirstPost that on his last day, Tabrez's father had gone to the forest area with his Hindu friends and then there was no news of him for two days. Two days after he disappeared, his body was found in the jungle. Lukman said police had registered a case against four friends of the deceased but six months after the incident, all the four were found dead in the same forest.

Tabrez's uncle Mohammad Sadar Alam said it was a murder but the police were not able to make any headway and thus the case was closed. He shared that the family believes it were people of "the other community" that killed Tabrez's father.

After his father's death, Tabrez had to man up and took the responsibility of being the family's breadwinner at the tender age of 10. The deceased hailed from Kadamdiha village of Saraikela Kharsawan district and worked in Pune as a welder. He had lost his mother when he was all of three and his sister was one. Sensing the difficulty of raising two children by himself, his father chose to remarry. He married a Hindu woman who converted to Islam and raised Tabrez and his sister.

"Very few of us knows Tabrez's formal name. We used to call him Sonu. He was a nice guy and he used to share a good relationship with his Hindu friends. I used to work with him and stay in the same building in Pune. He had been working at a fabrication workshop as welding labourer. I returned to my village and opened a shop here. It is hard to believe that we lost our friend in the same way he had lost his father," Lukman said of his deceased friend.

Tabrez had come to his village a few days before Ramzan for his wedding. This tragedy happened barely a month and a half after his betrothal. Wistfully, Lukman said his friend was to return to Pune with his wife and had booked a ticket for June 24, two days after he died.

Tabrez's wife Shaishta Ansari told FirstPost he was going back home to Saraikela Kharsawan with two friends from Jamshedpur last Tuesday. She said that a mob attacked him barely five kilometers from their home. The deceased's uncle Sadar Alam said the family doesn't know who these friends are; they only know that the duo fled when the mob attacked his nephew.

Police deny Shaista's claims. Station in-charge of Saraikela police station Avinash Kumar said they got a complaint from villagers of Dhatkidih, accusing Tabrez of theft. He said Tabrez was duly produced in the court and provided proper treatment before he was taken there.

Saraikela Kharsawan’s Superintendent of Police (SP) Kartik S said that they have registered a case of mob lynching acting on the written complaint of the deceased’s wife Shaista and investigating the case. The SP also suspects that there is a possibility of tampering of the video of the incident. A Special Investigation Team has also been formed to look into the case. Police handed over the body of the deceased to his family.

"I suspect the involvement of police in this case. I demand a high-level of inquiry," Tabrez's wife said. His family alleges that the police ignored the report of mob lynching on June 17 and reached the spot only the next day, until which the mob kept thrashing Tabrez relentlessly. The family further accused the police of putting pressure on hospitals to fabricate Tabrez's fitness report, certifying him as fit even though he was badly beaten up.

12 lynched in 4 years in Jharkhand

Jharkhand has been making headlines for many a mob-lynching incident. According to a report of Jharkhand Janadhikar Morcha, 12 people including 10 Muslims and two tribals have been killed in such incidents in the BJP regime in the state.

Hate Crime Watch reporter, a database of hate crimes across India by FactCheckIndia, reported 14 incidents of hate crime in Jharkhand from 2016 to 2019. US religious freedom report says religious intolerance in India grows under its right-wing government. An annual report on international religious freedom released on Friday said Hindu groups had used "violence, intimidation, and harassment" against Muslims and low-caste Dalits in 2017 to force a religion-based national identity.  

The report said groups claiming to protect cows—considered sacred by the Hindus—have attacked Muslims and Dalits. Christians have also been targeted for proselytising since Narendra Modi came to power in 2014.

Responding to the incident of Jharkhand, Hyderabad politician Asaduddin Owaisi tweeted about the incident. "This is the pattern with almost all lynchings. First, a Muslim is murdered by cow lovers. Then the most ridiculous excuses begin: a 'suspicion' of beef possession, theft, smuggling & love jihad. So much for sabka vishwas when we can be killed over mere 'suspicions'," he said.