In a shocking incident of suspected moral policing, a migrant worker was allegedly lynched to death in Kerala’s Ernakulam district after he visited the house of his female friend and her relative on Thursday, April 4. The deceased was identified as 24-year-old rapper Asok Das alias MC Munnu. Citing the postmortem report, Deputy Superintendent of Police told the media that Asok Das had internal injuries. Muvattupuzha police have arrested ten suspects in connection with the case and recorded the confession of a few accused and statements of the two women.
According to the FIR, Asok Das visited the house of his friend, who is also the complainant, in Valakam at around 5 pm on Thursday. After he left the house, he was stopped by a group of people from the neighbourhood near the house around 9.30 pm.
He was tied to a pole by the suspects and allegedly beaten. He was then taken to the Kolenchery Medical College, where he died during treatment. As per media reports, he fell down during the questioning by the mob and hit his head on a hard surface.
Speaking to the media, the DySP said 10 people have been arrested. “We have begun the investigation. Based on the postmortem report, there are internal injuries. It seems like Asok Das was beaten by the group,” he added.
The Kerala Police have invoked Section 174 (unnatural death) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) and Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code against the ten accused after a preliminary investigation.