A court in Murshidabad, West Bengal, sentenced 13 people to life imprisonment for lynching Harogobind Das and his son Chandan Das in April. The killing happened during a violent protest over the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025, at Samserganj. The court announced the verdict on December 22, 2025, and ordered the State to pay ₹15 lakh to the victims’ family as compensation. Public prosecutor Bivas Chatterjee said, “We made the case stand on seven Sections, including mob lynching, rioting, dacoity, house trespassing, and murder. The court has awarded life imprisonment to all convicts, including 10 years’ imprisonment for dacoity and house trespassing and five years for rioting. A sum of ₹5,000 fine has also been levied for each offence.” The convicted are Dildar Nadab, Asmaul Nadab alias Kalu, Inzamul Haque alias Bablu, Zia-ul Haque, Fekarul Sheikh alias Mahak, Azfarul Sheikh alias Bilai, Monirul Sheikh alias Moni, Iqbal Sheikh, Nurul Islam, Saba Karim, Hazrat Sheikh alias Hazrat Ali, Akbar Ali alias Albar Sheikh, and Yusuf Sheikh. The brutal murder occurred on April 12, 2025, when the father and son were dragged from their home and hacked to death. The protest erupted into violence, with properties torched and many residents fleeing areas including Dhulian and Tinpakuria. Additional Director General of Police Supratim Sarkar said the court found a property feud triggered the violence, worsened by the tense atmosphere during the protests. After the killings, the 13 accused fled but were caught in different states including Odisha and Jharkhand. Investigators used gait analysis, DNA from weapons, and mobile tower mapping to track them. This verdict marks the second mob lynching conviction in India and the first in West Bengal under the relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita. It is also the state’s first conviction for rioting. The violence had shaken the communally diverse Murshidabad area and led to Central forces being deployed on the Calcutta High Court’s orders. This ruling comes amid rising political tensions ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections.