"To kill, to terrorise, to dominate, to create a pure and ideal kingdom."

7 Muslim cattle-traders were lynched in Jharkhand by a mob who, on the basis of Whatsapp rumour forwarded to them, assumed they were child kidnappers.

This is heartbreaking, but only the latest in a long and regular stream of tragedies unfolding all over the country.

This author in Jharkhand fears that this incident is not connected to the other incidents of lynchings by gau-rakshaks to enforce a ban on cow-slaughter.

Moments before he was lynched on the mere suspicion of being a kidnapper

"The practice of mobs lynching people for possessing or consuming beef will be unlikely to become commonplace in Jharkhand, in my opinion, because the state, due to its remarkable Adivasi population, has traditionally been known to be a consumer of beef, pork, and whatever else might be considered taboo or inedible by the majority – for example, monitor lizards. Hence, what new story could be cooked up to create a situation of fear and distrust? What is most dear to people? Their children. Accuse some people of being kidnappers of children and have them lynched. In this age, when social media has become a carrier of hatred, is it that difficult to get anyone lynched? Be it beef or the abduction of little children, everything is just a pretext, an excuse. The purpose is to kill, to terrorise, to dominate, to create a pure and ideal kingdom."

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