New Delhi, September 1: A 48-year-old pregnant and deaf and mute woman was thrashed by a mob here over suspicion of being a child lifter, the police said on Sunday. The four-month pregnant woman, a resident of Tughlakabad in southeast Delhi, was beaten on August 27, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Atul Kumar Thakur said. The woman, who has been hospitalised, is stable now.

The police have arrested two persons, Deepak (27) and B. Shakuntala (52), both residents of Mandoli, after scrutinising CCTV footages, Thakur said. The DCP said a case has been registered against "unknown persons". He also urged the people not to pay heed to rumours of child abduction. Mob Lynching in Madhya Pradesh: Two Killed For Peacock Smuggling, Child Lifting.

The woman's family members said her in-laws threw her out from their Faridabad home on August 18 and she was missing since then.

"Somehow, the woman reached Harsh Vihar and was staying on the footpath. The locals used to give her food but on August 27, they attacked her," the police officer said.

The incident comes close on the heels of mob attacks over similar rumours in Uttar Pradesh.

Several people have been injured in violence over the rumours in Uttar Pradesh over the past week, forcing the police to warn the public that they have decided to invoke the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against rumour-mongers.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 01, 2019 10:41 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).