Dalit youth in Odisha tonsured, assaulted, and garlanded with slippers by casteist mob
Posted On January 6, 2025
The police in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district registered two first information reports in connection with an incident in which two Dalit youths accused of goat theft were assaulted, tonsured and garlanded with slippers.
The incident reportedly took place on December 27 in the jurisdiction of Biridi police station, according to Indian Express.
Odisha Congress leader Amiya Pandav brough attention to the case by sharing a video of the assault on X on Saturday morning.
Two men were allegedly chased by locals while they were transporting two goats in an auto rickshaw, claimed police officers. They were later rescued by the police, charged with theft, arrested and sent to judicial custody. They were eventually released on bail.
Seven persons have been booked for the assault under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act, 1989, along with sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
In a complaint lodged on January 1, a victim’s father alleged that his son and a friend were returning from Simadala village when a group of locals stopped their autorickshaw near the Baredia bridge, close to the panchayat office. The group reportedly questioned his son’s name and place of origin.
“While they heard his name, they abused my son and his friend in obscene language by casting aspersions on their caste and accusing them of stealing goats,” the father’s complaint read.
He also alleged that the mob robbed a silver necklace belonging to his son during the assault.
Condemning the incident, Congress leader Pandav wrote on X: “Lawlessness is the prime feature of BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party] ruled Odisha. See how two Dalit youths were treated in Jagatsinghpur! Human dignity is in danger, shame on the double engine Sarkar [a synonym for the BJP state and central governments].”
Courtesy : Maktoob Media
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