A man died after a mob in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur thrashed him through the bitter cold night, allegedly on the suspicion of stealing a tractor, said the police. They kept beating the man even as he begged for mercy, the cops said. Two people have been arrested in the case.

The horrific incident was reported from Yogiya village of Rajkhand North Panchayat in Muzaffarpur, nearly 70 km from capital Patna.

The man, identified as Shambhu Sahni, was allegedly accompanied by three more men but they managed to escape, said the police.

Shambhu Sahni was rushed to a hospital by the police where doctors declared him brought dead on arrival.

As seen in disturbing pictures from the crime scene, Shambhu Sahni, dressed in beige trousers, sky blue shirt and grey jacket, is lying listless on the ground. His bare feet are tied with a rope to an auto. His hands, resting on his chest, are tied with a rope as well. Hay sticks to his face and hair. People standing a few feet away are seen recording him with their mobile phones, showed the pictures.

According to the villagers, Shambhu had come with his three friends to steal the tractor. The owner of the tractor, say villagers, woke up on hearing a loud noise and while chasing the thieves Shambhu Sahni was caught by them.

“The young man was accused of tractor theft and the tractor owner, in connivance with anti-social elements, beat him up and murdered him,” said Abhijeet Alkesh, police station in-charge Aurai police station, Muzaffarpur.

Tractor owner Ganga Sahni and his nephew Pukar Sahni have been arrested and have been named main accused in the murder case, said the police officer.

(With inputs from Kaushal Kumar Pathak)