3 min readRanchiFeb 23, 2026 02:23 PM IST
A 25-year-old Dalit man was allegedly lynched by residents of a village in Jharkhand’s Palamu district after he went to meet a woman with whom he was purportedly in a relationship, police said on Monday.
The victim, identified as Pawan Kumar and also known as Pawan Ram, was a resident of Murma village. He died after being assaulted at Teliyahi village, under Padwa police station limits, late on Saturday night.
Padwa police station in-charge Anchit Kumar told The Indian Express that police initially received information that a man had been caught while allegedly attempting to steal a tractor battery and was being beaten by locals. “When the information first came to the police station, it was about an attempt to steal a battery. Villagers had gathered and assaulted him. He was tied to the cot and was beaten brutally. He died on the way to the hospital,” Kumar said.
A police patrolling team reached the spot and found Pawan tied up and severely assaulted. He was rushed to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
During the investigation and questioning of an arrested accused, police found inconsistencies in the theft claim. “The lock of the tractor battery had not been broken, and the theft angle appeared suspicious. During interrogation, it emerged that he had gone to the house to meet a girl. Family members saw him and assaulted him. Later, to give the matter a different colour, it was projected as a case of battery theft and an alarm was raised, after which other villagers gathered,” Kumar said.
Police arrested one accused, who is identified as the woman’s uncle, and registered an FIR under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita section 103(2), which deals with mob lynching. Kumar said no other details could be made public for now, as other accused may try to escape. Efforts are underway to arrest the others involved, police said.
The incident has triggered political reactions. Leader of Opposition Babulal Marandi, in a post on X, said he was “shocked” by the incident. He alleged that incidents of atrocities against the poor, Dalits and Adivasis are rising in Jharkhand and claimed that the state government remained silent on the killing. Marandi also tagged Chief Minister Hemant Soren in his post and demanded immediate arrest and strict action against the accused.
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Police said the postmortem examination is being conducted by a medical board in the presence of a magistrate, and the process is being videographed.
According to the police sources, the accused families belong to an Other Backward Classes (OBC) community. Further investigation is underway.
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