BENGALURU: Four women and two minors were among the 20 accused chargesheeted for lynching a 25-year-old man after mistaking him for a child lifter in Chamarajpet , southwest Bengaluru, in May this year.Chaos had prevailed across the state during the first half of 2018 as a video showing bike-borne men lifting a child went viral on social media, WhatsApp in particular. Each time the video was forwarded, senders described the incident as a fresh one that had taken place in a neighbouring district or taluk. Probe revealed the video’s origin was in Pakistan.By May-end, state police released another video requesting the public not to believe such videos and take the law into their hands. By then, police had registered over 70 cases and detained 30 men and women for questioning in connection with the attacks .At 1.30pm on May 23, Kalu Ram from Rajasthan, a tile worker with a construction firm, was walking near Pension Mohalla, Chamarajpet, where he had been living for a couple of months. Suddenly, locals attacked him, suspecting him to be a child-lifter. CCTV footage showed the crowd tying him up and beating him with a cricket bat and logs. He succumbed to injuries in a hospital.Three special teams were formed to track the miscreants and the root of the video as well.In a span of four days, all the accused were arrested; 18 of them are in judicial custody at Central Prison (Parappana Agrahara) since then. Two minors are in the juvenile home.By June-end, the teams had scanned more than 1.5 lakh WhatsApp numbers but failed to track the origin of the video.Paranoia had gripped the state, particularly the northern parts. Daily-wage workers, house maids and vagabonds who could not speak the local language and had an unkempt look were targeted. A group of women from Andhra Pradesh, who had come to Raichur looking for jobs, was roughed up by a mob near Raichur bus stand. Timely intervention by police had averted a major tragedy.

Stay updated with all the Bangalore Latest News headlines here. For more exclusive & live news updates from all around India, stay connected with NYOOOZ.