Archive · 1 Jan 2026
Editorial: Justice Still Elusive in Akhlaq Lynching Case
A man named Mohammad Akhlaq was killed by a mob in 2015 because people thought he had killed a cow and stored its meat.
A court recently decided that the people who did this should still be punished.
But some people think this is not enough because similar things keep happening to Muslims.
The court's decision is good, but it doesn't fix the bigger problem of violence and no punishment for those who do these bad things.
Mohammad Akhlaq was lynched in 2015 over rumours of cow slaughter.
The Surajpur court refused to allow the Uttar Pradesh government to withdraw prosecution.
The lynching is part of a wider pattern of violence against Muslims.
Political leaders have continued to praise groups involved in such violence.
The Supreme Court reminded authorities about mob violence in 2018.
- Who
- Mohammad Akhlaq, a Muslim man, was lynched by a mob.
- What
- The lynching was over rumours of cow slaughter and storing beef.
- When
- The incident occurred in 2015, and the court decision was in December 2023.
- Where
- The lynching took place in Dadri’s Bisada village, Uttar Pradesh.
- Why
- The lynching was part of a wider pattern of violence against Muslims, often justified by allegations of cow slaughter.
- Victim
- Mohammad Akhlaq
- Location
- Dadri’s Bisada village
- Year of Incident
- 2015
- Reason for Lynching
- Rumours of cow slaughter and storing beef
- Court Decision
- Surajpur court refused to allow UP government to withdraw prosecution
- Wider Context
- Part of a pattern of violence against Muslims
- Supreme Court Reminder
- 2018 reminder about mob violence