Dalit man lynched in Odisha for ‘cow slaughter’; six arrested

A 35-year-old Dalit man was lynched and his associate seriously injured by a mob on suspicion of cow slaughter in BJP-ruled Odisha’s Deogarh district, police confirmed on Thursday, 4 September.

The incident took place on 3 September, Wednesday, in Kundeijuri village, which falls under the jurisdiction of Riamal police station. The victims have been identified as Kishore Chamar, who was killed in the attack, and Goutam Nayak, who sustained injuries but managed to flee the scene.

Both men were residents of the neighbouring village of Kaunsidhipa and were known in the area for working as cattle skinners — individuals who remove hides from the carcasses of dead animals, a profession typically associated with marginalised communities.

According to police reports, a group of villagers discovered the two men in a nearby forested area as they were chopping beef. A severed cow head was also found at the location, which immediately raised suspicions among the locals that the animal had been slaughtered locally.

Though Chamar reportedly attempted to explain that the cow had died naturally and they were only processing the meat, the mob did not accept the explanation and turned violent.

“The two were beaten up by the group and Chamar died on the spot. Though Nayak was injured, he managed to escape,” said Deogarh superintendent of police Anil Kumar Mishra, speaking to PTI over the phone.

Police have since arrested six individuals in connection with the incident. Investigations are ongoing to determine whether the cow had indeed died naturally — though the materiality of this to the case of assault and manslaughter seems doubtful — and whether more people were involved in the assault.

The case has raised concerns once again over mob violence and vigilante justice, particularly in cases involving marginalised communities and sensitive issues such as cow slaughter.