India police
A mob in western India beat a man with mental disability to death by tying him to a tree upside down as two police constables watched the brutal assault like mute spectators - Representational image Daniel Berehulak /Getty Images

A mob in western India beat a man to death by tying him upside down to a tree in yet another shocking mob lynching incident reported in the country in the recent past.

A viral video of the gruesome act, committed in Maharashtra state's Thane district, showed two police constables watching the man bleeding following the assault, and doing nothing to rescue him.

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Police said the video was from 26 October and they have arrested three men who are suspected of beating the victim with rods and sharp weapons, leading to his death. The two policemen seen in the viral video were also suspended from duty, police added, according to Times Now News.

The victim's identity was not known, but documents found in his possession showed that he was a resident of Azamgarh city in Uttar Pradesh state in northern India and was receiving treatment for a mental condition.

Eyewitnesses also told police that the man started behaving violently following an argument with a shopkeeper that enraged the onlookers leading to the beating. They said that the victim got off a truck when the vehicle halted at their village in Dombivali area in Thane district and began arguing with the driver. He then picked up articles from a shop nearby and began throwing them at the driver, which prompted the shopkeeper to intervene. But the man began arguing with the shopkeeper too.

Soon, around 100-120 people gathered at the place and tried to intervene when the man bit two people. The crowd then began beating the man up. They later tied him to a tree upside down and continued thrashing him mercilessly.

Two constables who reached the spot did nothing to stop the mob from beating the man. The mob stopped only after the man stopped writhing and screaming in pain. He later died at a hospital as a result of his injuries.

The two suspended constables were identified as HN Garud and SV Kanchave. Villagers identified as Amit Patil, Sagar Patil and Balram Furad were arrested and charged with murder, according to Press Trust of India.