Mob Lynching - Ethical Issues and the way forward

It is a form of aggression in which a mob, under the guise of administering justice without a trial, punishes and tortures a presumed offender, sometimes resulting in mass killings.

Mob Lynching refers to a group of people being violent and leading to unethical clashes which could lead to rigorous injuries to the aggrieved person or a particular community.

Ethical Concerns involve:-

1. Increasing Intolerance- Incidents of mob lynching are the result of intolerance towards the person or his community.

2. Shows lack of empathy- Mob lynching involves violence against a person which shows that people lose the value of empathy towards their fellow citizens.

3. Failure of state- Under the social contract, the state is morally and legally obliged to ensure the safety of its subjects but these cases of mob lynching show intelligence failure and breakdown of law and order.

4. Lack of Wisdom- Most of the incidents of mob lynching are based on rumors/propaganda which shows that people involved in such events lack wisdom.

5. Against the greatest good- Incidents of mob lynching turn the community against the community which may harm the peace in society.

6. Fake news wild-spreading- An increase in widespread fake news against a particular group can lead to agitation in the mob against that group and leads to the taking up of this unlawful act.

Immediate steps to be taken could be as follows:-

• Taking Strict action against the culprit of Mob Lynching

• Assigning such cases to fast-track courts

• Using persuasion to cool the public.

Long-term steps include:-

1. Specific laws- Mob Lynching - ambiguity

2. Value Education- Empathy/ Compassion

3. Ensuring effective administration

4. Community policing- Preventing measures that can urge or rage the public with a hatred of feelings amongst the commons. This is mainly done by spreading fake news, deepfakes, or protests.

5. Speedy Justice- This will ensure people's trust in the bureaucrats and will believe the process.