Gorakhpur: In a shocking incident, the body of Mushtaq Ali, a 45–48-year-old resident of Badgo village in Gagaha police station area, was found lying by the roadside in Thathauli village on Saturday morning. Locals on a morning walk informed the police, who took the body into custody and sent it for post-mortem.

A video circulating on social media shows Mushtaq being brutally thrashed by a group of villagers. It is alleged that he died after the assault, reportedly carried out on suspicion of theft. Police confirmed that a case has been registered and one accused has been taken into custody.

However, some villagers offered a different version. Jabbar Ali, Om Prakash, and Deepak Singh stated that Mushtaq had been suffering from mental illness and was under treatment. They also claimed he had visited the police station just a day earlier.

Station in-charge Sushil Kumar Chaurasia said no external injury marks were visible on the body and the cause of death would be clear only after the post-mortem report. “We are investigating the matter from all angles,” he added.

Mushtaq is survived by two sons and a daughter