A 31-year-old migrant labourer from Chhattisgarh, Ramnarayan Baghel, tragically lost his life in Kerala's Palakkad district on December 17, 2025, after a mob brutally assaulted him under the mistaken belief that he was a Bangladeshi national. Baghel, a resident of Sakti district, had traveled to Kerala seeking employment opportunities to support his family, only for his journey to end in unimaginable violence during what began as a routine detention by locals.

The incident took place in the evening in the Attapallam area under the jurisdiction of Walayar police station, where residents initially detained Baghel on suspicion of theft. Despite thorough searches yielding no stolen property, the group proceeded with aggressive questioning about his identity and origins, escalating into a prolonged and fatal beating that highlighted deep-seated prejudices against perceived outsiders.

A widely circulated 31-second video of the assault captured the mob's relentless verbal abuse, with assailants repeatedly accusing him of being "Bangladeshi" while mocking his feeble attempts to explain his background. In the footage, Baghel, visibly in distress and barely conscious, mentioned his village and sister, only to face derision and further blows, underscoring the mob's refusal to accept his explanations amid chants reinforcing their false assumption.

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The post-mortem examination conducted afterward revealed the extreme brutality of the attack, documenting more than 80 injury marks across his body, including severe head injuries from blunt force trauma, shattered ribs, multiple fractures in limbs, deep lacerations, and excessive internal and external bleeding that ultimately caused his death. Medical experts noted blood oozing from his chest and other areas during the ordeal, painting a grim picture of the sustained violence inflicted upon the victim.

Kerala Police swiftly registered a case under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for murder and arrested five accused individuals—Murli, Prasad, Anu, Bipin, and Anandan—all local residents of Attapallam village, the following day on December 18. Authorities confirmed Baghel had no prior criminal record, while officials from both Kerala and Chhattisgarh governments expressed commitments to provide financial and other assistance to his devastated family, which includes his wife and two young sons aged eight and ten, ensuring support for their future amid widespread condemnation of the incident.

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