Five more arrested in Palghar lynching case, 115 so far

Five more persons were arrested on Friday in the Palghar lynching case by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) of Maharashtra Police, an official said.

It took the number of persons arrested in connection with the lynching of three men including two monks in neighbouring Palghar district to 115, including nine minors, he said.

The incident took place at Gadchinchle village on April 16 when the two monks were heading towards Surat from Mumbai in a car with a driver to attend a funeral.

A mob of villagers stopped them and beat them to death on suspicion that they were thieves, even as a few police personnel had reached the spot.

Some of the accused later fled into the dense forest around the village. The police used drones to hunt them, the official said.

The five accused persons were produced before a court on Friday and remanded in the CID's custody till May 13, he said, adding that probe was on.