Tripura Mob Attacks Octogenarian After Son's Suicide

Agartala: A mob in Tripura’s Gomati district beat and humiliated an 80-year-old man on July 17. Residents tied the man to a pole and paraded him through the village wearing a garland of shoes. The violence broke out after the man’s son was found hanging from the ceiling of their family home.

Locals blamed the elderly man for the death of his son. They claimed the father had repeatedly raped his daughter-in-law over several months, pushing his son to take his own life. Nutanbazar Police Station Officer-in-Charge Bikram Debbarma confirmed the village allegations. "We received a memorandum signed by the villagers alleging that the octogenarian repeatedly raped his daughter-in-law for the last few months, as a result of which his son died by suicide," Debbarma said.

Video footage of the assault spread quickly on social media. It shows the man suffering at the hands of the angry crowd. Police arrived at the scene and rescued the suspect from the mob. Officers moved him to a local hospital where he remains under medical observation.

Authorities have not received an official complaint from the victim yet. Police intend to start legal proceedings once a formal report is filed. Officials are currently investigating the circumstances of both the alleged sexual assault and the suicide of the man's son.