This happened 4-5 years ago. There was a rumour going around in my village. Someone used to come at night and cut women’s clothes from various places and then go away. He used to cut mainly their undergarments.
Due to such incidents, there was an atmosphere of fear in the village. Everyone wanted to catch that person. But no one had seen him. There was also a rumour that those people do all this in groups. Some said that they apply black oil on their entire body. Some said that only their shadows are visible.
One day early in the morning my father told me that one of the men from that gang has been caught and the villagers have beaten him up badly. The place where he was held hostage was not far from my house. I too went to see him but I felt like crying after seeing him. He looked mentally retarded. He was unable to speak anything. He was beaten up very badly. There were wounds all over his body. He was also burnt at many places. He was begging for mercy from everyone. But people would beat him up as soon as he tried to speak something.
Note: Image is taken from Google.
Tears came to my eyes seeing his condition. My mind was telling me that he was not a criminal.
After some time, it was found out that he was the only son of a person from a nearby village who was mentally challenged. He accidentally lost his way and came to our village and hid in a house out of fear of dogs. The people there mistook him for the person who used to cut the clothes of women. Two days later we got the news of his death. That innocent man died due to excessive beating. Even today this incident makes me cry. His innocent tears, the hope for mercy in his eyes shakes me.