An Indian man may be permanently blinded after an angry mob of villagers injected acid into his eye socket as punishment for stealing a cow.
Mohammad Shahid, from Balchanda-Haripur village in the largely Muslim Araria district, was caught stealing a cow from another villager, Gosai Mandal, last week, according to local reports, the Daily Mail reported.
Local villagers tracked down the man, a known cattle thief, and beat him while a syringe full of acid was injected into his right eyeball.
Shahid is now completely blind after his left eye was injured in an identical attack 5 years ago, the Mail said.
He was handed over to police who admitted him to a local government hospital for treatment.
Inspector Vivekanand Singh said his officers are now investigating the villagers for “inflicting inhumane treatment.”
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• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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