Overview
- Sk Makandar Mahammad died after a group intercepted a pickup van transporting cattle near Balasore and assaulted him in the early hours of January 14.
- Police say three suspects are in custody and eight more individuals present at the scene have been identified, with a search underway to locate others.
- An initial case treated the episode as a road mishap and cited animal-protection laws against the van’s driver and owner before a second FIR alleged a mob attack and invoked the BNS lynching provision.
- A video circulating on social media purportedly shows the victim being beaten and forced to chant religious slogans, though police say its authenticity remains unverified.
- The victim’s family, calling him the sole breadwinner, demands full accountability, while opposition leaders accuse the state government of enabling rising vigilantism.