“Wave Of Lynchings”
The events that led up to the brutal assault on Monday of two men in Uttar Pradesh’s Hapur district on the outskirts of New Delhi are unclear — but one of them died and the other sustained injuries. The family of the dead man, Qasim, a 45-year-old cattle trader, says that he had set out when he heard about the possibility of cattle being on sale, and the next thing they heard was that a mob had set itself upon him, killing him. Sameyddin’s relatives say he had been out getting grass for his cattle when he spied the mob attack on Qasim — he tried to run to safety but was beaten up nonetheless. Qasim’s son says his father’s death was the outcome of a conspiracy. Others in the village say locals were on edge following rumours that cow smuggling was afoot. And administration officials say it may all have been a case of road rage. Investigations are on, so what actually transpired is not definitively known yet. But given lynchings across north India by ‘cow protection’ vigilantes, it is not difficult to miss the communal dangers here. Elsewhere, from Tamil Nadu in the south to Assam in the Northeast, men and women have been lynched on suspicion that they were out to kidnap children. To give just a few examples, in May, a homeless man in Pulicat, north of Chennai, was battered to death on such suspicion, as was a car-borne woman pilgrim in Tiruvannamalai district, who offered some sweets to children while seeking directions. This month, in Assam’s Karbi Anglong district, two men from Guwahati were killed by a mob on the same anxiety that they were looking to kidnap children. In many cases — including in Tamil Nadu and Assam — such public concern was created or heightened by warnings that were circulated on social media. Yet, irrespective of whether the lynchings are due to fear of kidnappings or are deliberate acts by cow protection vigilantes, the authorities should not treat the crime of murder and the allegations that enrage a mob with the same equivalence. Murder is murder, but the killing of another human being by a murderous crowd out to enforce mob justice or avert an imagined crime takes an extraordinary toll of the civilities of wider society. The police must make it clear, by word and action, that murder and mob violence will be strictly dealt with. Yet, the administration must also reckon with a new challenge: the use of social media, especially WhatsApp groups and forwards, to spread fear and panic. Responses such as surveillance and Internet shutdowns are not just impossible — in a free society, they are inadvisable. What is needed is an administration that reaches out to local communities to keep them in the loop in order to check trouble-makers — and that conveys sufficient good faith, so individuals will trust it to keep the peace and sift real threats from mischievous rumours.
WORDS AND MEANINGS –
1) Brutal
Meaning: Savagely violent.
Example: “a brutal murder”
Synonyms: Savage, Cruel
2) Outskirts
Meaning: The outer parts of a town or city.
Example: “he built a new factory on the outskirts of Birmingham”
Synonyms: Boundary, Suburbia
3) Sustained
Meaning: Continuing for an extended period or without interruption.
Example: “several years of sustained economic growth”
4) Set out
Meaning: Begin a journey.
Example: “he set out early next morning”
Synonyms: Start, Embark
Antonyms: Arrive
5) Spied
Meaning: Discern or make out, especially by careful observation.
Example: “he could spy a figure in the distance”
Synonyms: Notice, Observe
6) Nonetheless
Meaning: In spite of that; nevertheless.
Example: “the rally, which the government had declared illegal, was nonetheless attended by some 6,000”
7) Conspiracy
Meaning: A secret plan by a group to do something unlawful or harmful.
Example: “a conspiracy to destroy the government”
Synonyms: Plan, Deception
8) Smuggling
Meaning: To take things or people to or from a place secretly and often illegally.
Example: She was caught trying to smuggle 26 kilos of heroin out of/into the country.
Synonyms: Sneak
9) Afoot
Meaning: In preparation or progress; happening or beginning to happen.
Example: “plans are afoot for a festival”
Synonyms: Happening, Around
10) Road rage
Meaning: Anger or violence between drivers, often caused by difficult driving conditions.
Example: Earlier today a man was arrested for attacking a motorist in a road rage incident.
11) Transpired
Meaning: (of a secret or something unknown) come to be known; be revealed.
Example: “it transpired that millions of dollars of debt had been hidden in a complex web of transactions”
Synonyms: Emerge, Materialize
12) Lynched
Meaning: (of a group of people) kill (someone) for an alleged offence without a legal trial, especially by hanging.
Example: “her father had been lynched by whites”
Synonyms: Execute, Hang
13) Battered
Meaning: Injured by repeated blows or punishment.
Example: “he finished the day battered and bruised”
Synonyms: Beaten, Hit
14) Anxiety
Meaning: A feeling of worry, nervousness, or unease about something with an uncertain outcome.
Example: “he felt a surge of anxiety”
Synonyms: Worry, Concern
Antonyms: Calmness, Serenity
15) Heightened
Meaning: Make or become more intense.
Example: “the pleasure was heightened by the sense of guilt that accompanied it”
Synonyms: Intensify, Increase
Antonyms: Reduce, Decrease
16) Deliberate
Meaning: Done consciously and intentionally.
Example: “a deliberate attempt to provoke conflict”
Synonyms: Intentional, Calculated
Antonyms: Accidental, Unintentional
17) Enrage
Meaning: Make (someone) very angry.
Example: “the students were enraged at these new rules”
Synonyms: Anger, Infuriate
Antonyms: Placate, Calm
18) Enforce
Meaning: Cause (something) to happen by necessity or force.
Example: “there is no outside agency to enforce cooperation between the players”
Synonyms: Compulsory, Obligatory
Antonyms: Voluntary
19) Reckon with
Meaning: To deal with a difficult or powerful person or thing.
Example: If you harm her, you’re going to have the police to reckon with.
Synonyms: Deal, Action
20) Mischievous
Meaning: (of an action or statement) causing or intended to cause harm or trouble.
Example: “a mischievous allegation for which there is not a shred of evidence”
Synonyms: Malevolent, Hostile
Antonyms: Harmless, Well intentioned
