Mangaluru, July 6: A man was attacked by a mob in Karnataka's Mangaluru on Thursday on suspicion of being a child lifter when he was travelling with his own daughter. According to a report in The News Minute, the 30-year-old man identified as Kaleed was travelling with his two-year-old daughter in an autorickshaw in Mangaluru’s Ujjire town when the incident happened.

The report says that Kaleed was scolding his daughter who was crying in the auto. Two men on a motorcycle saw the man with his crying daughter and asked the auto driver to stop. They then pulled the man and started beating him.

When more people gathered and started beating Kaleed, he then told the crowd that the girl was his own child. The police after reaching the spot rescued Kaleed and took him and his daughter to the police station. Locals who followed them claimed Kaleed was lying and was a child abductor, following which a call was made to Kaleed's wife who confirmed that the child was their daughter. The police then appealed to people not to believe in WhatsApp or social media rumours.

The incident comes at a time when similar child theft rumours have led to the lynching of over 20 people in just one month. The Centre had on Thursday written to all states and Union Territories to take steps to prevent incidents of mob violence due to child lifting rumours being circulated on social media. The Ministry of Home Affairs in a statement said that they have "urged them to keep a watch for early detection of such rumours and initiate effective measures."

Centre also asked states and UTs to ensure effective investigation into cases of child abduction to instill confidence among the affected people.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jul 06, 2018 03:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).