Rangpur lynching: 'I'm not a thief, I'm a cobbler' – the pleas went unheard

In a devastating incident, two men in Rangpur, Ruplal Das and Pradeep Lal, were mercilessly beaten to death by a mob which suspected them of being thieves, despite their desperate pleas for their lives.

A harrowing video, which has since gone viral on social media platforms such as Facebook, shows the two men pleading with folded hands, but the mob remained unmoved, reports Prothom Alo.

The victims were Ruplal Das, 40, a cobbler from Ghanirampur village, and his relative Pradeep Lal, 35, from Baluabata village.

They had gone to Ruplal's village on Saturday night, reportedly regarding a prospective groom for his daughter, Nupur. On their way back, near the Bottala area of Taraganj Upazila, they were stopped by locals who accused them of stealing a van.

The mob's suspicion was fuelled by a bizarre coincidence.

At the same time, two local van pullers fell unconscious, and the crowd immediately concluded that the two men had stolen the van after incapacitating its owners with some toxic substance.

In the video, as the mob grew more agitated, a young man named Mehedi Hasan tried to intervene and suggested calling the police.

Ruplal could be heard desperately crying out, "I am not a thief or a dacoit; I am a cobbler who mends shoes in Taraganj Bazaar."

But his pleas were met with a man shouting, "You are the father of all thieves."

Ruplal then called out to urinate, but the angry crowd thought he was trying to escape and wouldn't let him go. A little later, he collapsed to the ground. Pradeep was sitting on top of the van, and people there said, "He's on drugs, he's just acting!"

The video also shows a young man taking a plastic bottle from a sack on the van and holding it to his nose. A moment later, he says, "Brother, please, someone hold me," before collapsing to the ground. 

Two people then picked him up and carried him away. But the video shows that the crowd started beating Ruplal and Pradeep again.

After the brutal beating, Ruplal Das was taken to Taraganj Upazila Health Complex, where he was declared dead. Pradeep Lal was rushed to Rangpur Medical College and Hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries early yesterday morning.

The incident sparked a wave of grief and anger.

When Ruplal's body arrived at his home that evening, locals blocked the Rangpur-Dinajpur highway in protest. The following morning, the streets of Bottala were patrolled by police and the army.

At Ruplal's home, the sounds of wailing could be heard as relatives and neighbours gathered to mourn.

Ruplal's wife, Bharati Rani, has since filed a murder case at Taraganj Police Station, accusing some 700 unnamed individuals.

According to Prothom Alo, police have already arrested four men in connection with the crime after analysing video footage.

The officer-in-charge of the station, MA Faruk, stated that operations are underway to arrest the other culprits and that no one involved will be spared.