A Dalit migrant labourer from Chhattisgarh, Ramnarayan Baghel, was lynched in Kerala's Palakkad district on December 17, 2025, after being mistaken for a Bangladeshi national and suspected of theft. The incident has sparked outrage and fear among migrant workers in the region.

Baghel, 31, a resident of Karhi village in Sakti district, Chhattisgarh, had arrived in Palakkad on December 13 in search of work and was employed as a daily-wage labourer at a construction site. According to his relative, Kishan Baghel, Ramnarayan had traveled to Kerala at the request of a distant relative, Shashikant Baghel, also from the same village.

Reports indicate that Baghel was allegedly attacked by a group of people and beaten with sticks. Before his death, Baghel told hospital staff that he was attacked by a mob accusing him of theft. However, investigators found no evidence of theft in his possession. The autopsy revealed over 80 injuries all over his body, with death resulting from excessive bleeding caused by severe blunt force wounds to the head and other body parts.

Following the incident, tensions rose in the area, prompting the police to increase security to prevent further unrest. Kerala police have arrested five people in connection with the lynching. The arrested individuals have been identified as Murali, Prasad, Anu, Bipin, and Anandan, all of whom allegedly have criminal records. They were produced before court and sent to judicial custody, and further arrests are likely. A detailed investigation is underway to determine the exact motive and sequence of events. A case has been registered at the Walayar police station under Section 103(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

The Kerala government has promised a compensation of at least Rs 10 lakh to Baghel's family. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan called the killing "unacceptable in a progressive society" and ordered strict action. The government has also formed a 10-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), led by the Palakkad Superintendent of Police, to probe the incident.

The incident has taken a political turn, with the ruling CPI(M) alleging that four of the five arrested individuals are linked to the BJP-RSS. CPI(M) leaders claim that the RSS's "politics of hate" led to Baghel's death, with the labeling of him as a "Bangladeshi" stemming from ethnic hatred. The Congress party has criticized the incident as a failure of law and order.

Baghel's death has left his family and village in deep mourning. He is survived by his wife, Lalita, and two young sons, aged around eight and nine. After completing legal formalities, including a postmortem examination, his body will be sent back to his native village for the last rites.