Police arrested eight people, including four minors, for lynching a dentist in Delhi late on Thursday. A group of some 15 young men dragged 40-year-old Pankaj Narang out of his house in west Delhi's Vikaspuri neighbourhood a little after midnight and beat him with bats and rods. Narang, who suffered severe injuries to his head, died on the way to the hospital.

The men arrested are in their early twenties, while the minors are between the ages of 17 and 18. A juvenile and one Naseer, 23, are the prime accused. A case of murder, attempt to murder, trespassing and rioting has been registered, police said. Five of the accused were remanded to judicial custody till March 28 by a New Delhi court.

The exact details of the incident are still unclear. PTI reported that Narang had been taking a walk when the minor and Naseer brushed passed him on a motorcycle, which led to an argument. However, NDTV reported a different sequence of events. According to their report, police said Narang was playing cricket with his son and nephew, celebrating India's one-run win against Bangladesh in the World Twenty20 tournament, when the ball rolled out on to the road. When his eight-year-old son ran out to retrieve it, Naseer and the juvenile sped past on a motorbike and grazed the child, after which Narang had a heated argument with them.

The young men drove away but returned a few minutes later with several others, and then proceeded to assault the dentist. Witnesses said people gathered had tried to intervene but were hit as well.