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(Trigger warning: Descriptions of violence. Reader discretion advised.)
"They (accused) plucked out his toenails while beating him. He was cold like a dead body when he was brought back to our house. Seeing him like that, I too died with him," recalled Umrana Mohammad, sister of a 26-year-old man who was allegedly tied to a pole and beaten to death on suspicion of theft in northeast Delhi early on Tuesday, 26 September.
Sitting outside her modest, one-room house in Sundar Nagri, grief engulfed Umrana, who fought her tears while consoling her three sisters, all of whom lost their only brother – Isar Mohammad.
In a purported video that went viral on social media, five men were seen beating Isar with sticks while he is tied to a pole for allegedly stealing prasad and Rs 20 from a Ganpati pandal in the area.
The video also showed the victim crying in pain and pleading with them to stop. The incident came to light after the victim's father, 60-year-old Abdul Wajid, who is a fruit vendor, contacted the Delhi Police late on Tuesday night shortly after his son succumbed to his injuries.
A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered in the Nand Nagri police station under Section 302 (murder) and 34 (criminal intention) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). Seven persons have been arrested and one minor has been apprehended, the Delhi Police told The Quint.
Kamal (23), his brother Manoj (19), Yunus (20), Kishan (19), Pappu (24), Lucky, who runs a momo stall, and a 17-year-old minor are among those apprehended.
'Beaten Up For More Than One Hour': Eyewitness Recall Incident
Isar, who was a person with an intellectual disability, worked as a labourer. He was the only son to Abdul Wajid and only brother to his three sisters. They lost their mother in their childhood, police said.
According to the police, the incident took place just 200 metres from Isar's house, between 4 am and 6 am, on Tuesday. In his police complaint, Abdul Wajid said that his son had left the house early in the morning without informing anyone while they were asleep.
"The seven accused caught Isar lurking around the area. They thought that he was a thief. They began asking him questions but he was unable to reply properly (he was a person with intellectual disability). They had then tied him up to an electric pole and had thrashed him," police officials said.
Recalling the incident, 50-year-old Chandravathi, a neighbour and an eyewitness, told The Quint:
"It was around 5 am when my son and I woke up to a loud noise. When we went to our balcony, we saw over eight men beating, punching and kicking this boy while he was crying in pain for help."
Though she and her family members tried to intervene, the men allegedly did not listen to them and continued beating Isar for more than an hour.
"I heard he stole from our Ganpati stall. I didn't want to get involved and went back to doing my work," Chandravathi said.
Another eyewitness, Kosal, said that at around 6 am, several bystanders also took turns in beating the boy. "Everyone who was leaving to work heard of the incident and started hitting him, which was very hard to see," she said.
Though the incident took place early in the morning, the family came to know hours later, after their neighbour 17-year-old Aamir spotted Isar lying on the streets.
At around 3:30 pm, Aamir, who was on his way to his tuition classes, saw his neighbour lying in a pool of blood and brought him back home in a rickshaw. "Aamir heard a voice calling out his name and realised it was Isar and immediately went to his rescue," Aamir's sister Rihanna said.
The accused took Isar to another spot, allegedly thrashed him and abandoned him on the streets, a police officer told The Quint on the condition of anonymity.
'Abba, They Beat Me Up Without Reason...': Isar's Last Words
Once Isar reached his house, he fell to the ground like a "lifeless body," described his sisters. Abdul Wajid was not at home when the incident took place, they said.
"We didn't even know what had happened to him. He collapsed right to the ground and we got scared because his body started to get cold," said teary-eyed Samarin.
"Initially, we thought he fell sick. But we realised that his nails were pulled out, his head was bleeding, and he had injury marks in his body. When we tried speaking to him, he didn't respond," his other sister Usma told The Quint.
According to Northeast Delhi Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Joy Tirkey, the sisters were afraid as they were alone at home and didn't know what to do. "They thought they will wait for the father to return and then take Isar to hospital," he told The Quint.
Abdul Wajid rushed home at around 6:30 pm after hearing about the incident.
“When I reached, my son was almost dead. He asked for water and I gave it to him. In his last words, he told me that he was caught by a group of men. They assumed he was a thief and assaulted him brutally. He said they kicked him, hit him with sticks, pulled out his nails while he was tied to a pole. He said he was beaten without any reason. A minute after, he died right in my arms,” he told The Quint.
'What Did He Do To Deserve This?': Angry Kin Demand Justice
Back in the streets of Sundar Nagri, a group of 25 people are sitting outside Isar's house recalling the incidents of the fateful night. Paramilitary forces have been deployed outside the victim’s house, at the spot and in the area to avoid any untoward incident.
Speaking to The Quint on the condition of anonymity, a police official confirmed that there is no communal angle.
"Since it is a communal-sensitive area, we have deployed paramilitary forces to avoid any untoward situations. There is no communal angle to the case," he said.
A lifeless Abdul Wajid hugged his grieving daughters. "He was my only son. What is more sad is that nobody stopped them (accused)," he said, blaming the local residents for not intervening to rescue Isar while he was being thrashed.
Isar's neighbours described him a "naive, cheerful and happy" boy.
"I know that Isar is not a thief. How can you beat someone to death like this? Why did he deserve this? Is it because we are poor and we have no one to raise a voice for us. We lost a brother for life over Rs 20. What will we do now?" asked Umrana.
Wajid and his daughters wanted only one thing – justice for Isar. "I want those people to be in jail. I want to see them suffer, just like how my poor son suffered in pain," he told The Quint.