Elham Asaad Buaras
A Muslim man was allegedly tied with a dog leash and brutally assaulted by a mob after visiting a Hindu woman friend at her home in northern India, police and local reports said.
The attack took place on July 18 in Kankhal, a neighbourhood of Haridwar in Uttarakhand state, after Shadab Khan, a resident of Karnal in neighbouring Haryana, visited the home of a woman he had known for around five years.
Videos circulating on social media appeared to show the injured man sitting outside the woman’s home with blood visible from a head wound while a crowd gathered around him. Other footage reportedly showed a dog leash tied around his neck as people questioned him about visiting the woman.
In one video, a man can be heard asking whether Shadab knew the woman was Hindu, while another clip appeared to show him being slapped.
According to the woman’s complaint to police, around 10 to 12 men entered her home and began assaulting Shadab.
“I tried to intervene, but they did not stop. They abused him and threatened to kill him,” she told police.
The woman said she had known Shadab for five years and had no objection to him visiting her home.
Police said they were alerted after receiving information that a man visiting a woman had been assaulted. He was taken to hospital for treatment, and a case was later registered following the woman’s complaint.
Senior police officer Anuj Singh said authorities were reviewing CCTV footage and videos circulating online to identify those involved.
“Appropriate legal action will be taken,” he said.
The case has been registered under several sections of India’s Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including voluntarily causing hurt, rioting, house trespass, criminal intimidation and intentional insult intended to provoke a breach of peace.
Ravi Chauhan, Haridwar district president of the Bajrang Vahini Dal, said his organisation had received information that “a Muslim man was found in an objectionable state”.
“We informed the police and handed him over to them,” he said.
Police have not publicly confirmed arrests so far and are continuing their investigation.
