Ghaziabad, June 19 (IANS) In a case of street justice getting official nod, a mob that lynched a suspected burglar here in Uttar Pradesh Thursday got a pat on the back as the police called them “brave men” and refused to file any charges against them. According to the police, the incident occurred around 4.00 a.m. Thursday when Riyasat Ali, a resident of Vikram enclave colony in Ghaziabad suburb of the national capital, was returning from a business trip. When he entered the colony, he saw two men attempting to break the lock of a parked car.

Ali raised an alarm, and residents of the colony gathered and overpowered one of them. The residents mercilessly assaulted the burglar before handing him over to the police. His accomplice, however, managed to flee.

The police took the burglar to the district hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The police have slapped a case of theft against the deceased. “A case under section 380 (theft) and 511 (offence punishable with life imprisonment) is being registered against the deceased,” said Circle Officer S.P. Singh.

When asked about the mob beating that killed the man, the officer called them “brave men” and refused to take any action against them.

Raza Bahari, a resident of the colony, said: “The burglars had committed burglary in Ali’s house thrice in the past. But the police ignored the complaint. The local residents were angered over the police’s attitude. If police had taken action on earlier complaints, this incident would not have happened.”