Madhu Lynching case : Safety must for tribals
Five years after Madhu, a 27-year-old tribal, was lynched in Kerala’s Attappady, the trial court last week awarded seven-year imprisonment to 13 out of the 16 accused. It’s heartening to see the justice delivered, though many witnesses turned hostile during the trial, and there were apprehensions that the culprits behind a helpless man’s death may go unpunished.
On February 22, 2018, the killing that shook the conscience of Kerala society occurred. A group of men captured the tribesman from a cave inside the forest. They tied his hands, beat him up, and paraded on the road, accusing him of serial thefts. By the time the police intervened, Madhu was badly injured and died on the way to the hospital. Belonging to Chindakki tribal hamlet in Attappady, Madhu had a mental illness and had reportedly preferred to stay aloof in the forest. Images and videos of the incident shot by the accused became a turning point in the case. At first, the police ignored the gruesome murder. But, thanks to the widely shared videos on social media, they had to book 16 people in the case. After visiting Madhu’s house, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced several steps, including setting up care homes in the tribal hamlet of Attappady to accommodate persons with mental health issues. But not much progress has been made on this front.
Of late, there has been a rise in attacks on tribals and those belonging to the backward communities in Kerala. On February 11 this year, Viswanathan, a 46-year-old tribal man from Wayanad, was found dead after a group of people roughed him up, alleging that he stole a mobile phone. To be sure, such crimes are not restricted to Kerala. The National Crime Records Bureau data shows there were 50,291 cases of crimes against Dalits in 2020, a 9.4% increase from 2019. But that should not be an excuse for Kerala, which prides itself on being a progressive society.
The recent incidents have indeed cast a blot on Kerala’s image. What is needed is stern and immediate action by the police to ensure that such crimes are not repeated. Will the verdict in the Madhu case instil fear and act as a deterrent? The jury is out on that. Meanwhile, the government must do everything possible to uplift the lives of the tribal communities, still considered outliers in the state.