In a video that surfaced on social media over the weekend, a mob is seen assaulting Rajesh Kumar, a Dalit man in Uttar Pradesh’s Bahraich. Kumar was tied to a pole, beaten up, his face blackened and his head shaved.
The 30-year-old daily wage earner was accused of stealing a toilet seat from a house in Hardi area and was subsequently assaulted by local BJP leader Radheshyam Mishra and two of his aides, police officials said in a statement to NDTV. Mishra is on the run, but his two aides have been arrested, police confirmed.
Kumar has further alleged that the local BJP leader and his supporters also made casteist remarks targeting him.
In the video that went viral on social media, crowds were seen cheering and recording as Kumar was manhandled, his face was blackened and his head shaved.
A senior police official told NDTV that a case has been registered against the accused under charges of assault, criminal intimidation and under provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act of 1989.
"Two people have been arrested and the search is on for the third accused. If they suspected him of theft, they should have come to the police," the officer revealed in a statement to NDTV.
