Indian judge faces death threats after sentencing 14 men to life for lynching
An Indian judge has become the target of online abuse and death threats days after she sentenced 14 men to life imprisonment for lynching a man to death.
On 12 June, Additional District and Sessions Judge Tabassum Khan of a court in Madhya Pradesh state found the men guilty of charges including murder, attempted murder, rioting, and wrongful restraint. The crime occurred in 2022 when 50-year-old Nazir Ahmad was transporting cattle at night and was intercepted by a group of individuals claiming to be cow protectors, armed with sticks and rods. In many Indian states, cow slaughter is illegal, and cows are considered sacred by Hindus.
The men dragged Ahmad and his two companions from the vehicle and brutally assaulted them on suspicion of cow smuggling. Ahmad later died from his injuries; his companions survived and testified in court.
In her judgment, Judge Khan noted that the crime was a clear case of mob lynching. However, the verdict has made her the target of religiously motivated hatred. In the days following the judgment, numerous videos appeared online abusing and threatening Khan, who is Muslim. The videos implied that Khan had ruled against the men because they were Hindu.
While court judgments are often criticized, the attacks on Khan have focused not on her legal reasoning but on her religion. The scale of the abuse has prompted leading judicial bodies to rally behind her, and she has been provided police protection.
The attacks began soon after the verdict when family members of the convicted men gathered outside the courtroom, reportedly protesting the judgment, and attempted to stop the police convoy transporting the men to prison. They alleged that the men were being punished for 'saving cows'.
Subsequently, an online campaign of abuse emerged, with videos from Hindu right-wing influencers directed at Khan, containing communal slurs, rape threats, and death threats. The incident highlights the challenges faced by the judiciary in maintaining impartiality amid communal tensions.
