Bihar refrains from invoking SC/ST Act in spite of eyewitness accounts of a Maulana humiliating a Hindu Dalit youth.
Three persons have been detained in Samastipur district in Bihar, in connection with a case in which a Dalit youth was thrashed and forced to lick spit because he was allegedly “having an affair” with a Muslim girl. The stringent provisions of the SC/ST Act have not been invoked against the accused,
by Bihar Police, in spite of the incident taking place in full public view with several eye witnesses to it.
The shocking incident was reported to have happened on October 19. In the video that has since gone viral, Allaudin, a Maulana forced the youth to spit and then lick it 5 times to humiliate him over an alleged relationship with a Muslim girl. According to reports, the accused Maulana Alauddin has not yet been apprehended but his son Firoz, who is also an accused, was taken into custody.
Chowkidar Ram Bharos Paswan, the complainant in this incident, has accused 50 to 60 unknown people in his complaint.
Vibhutipur Sandeep Kumar, the station’s in-charge, has stated that the case had been filed under Sections 348 and 323 of the IPC, which are both assault-related sections of the Indian Penal Code but not under the more stringent conditions of the SC/ST Atrocities Act. He stated that the arrests and ensuing police action were based on collected evidence and ongoing research.
On the issue of not including sections of the more stringent SC/ST Act in the case, Sandeep Kumar stated that such decisions were taken by the concerned Higher authorities and needed to be followed as received. As of Nov 1st ( more than 10 days after the reported incident ), no detailed Police Press release has been issued, which is typically a responsibility of Senior Officials, implying political pressure.
Shravan Paswan, the head of Mahesari village in the Ujiyarpur Police Station area, where the victim resides, expressed shock at the incident and wondered why Raju was thrashed mercilessly and made to humiliatingly lick spit, over a mere allegation, instead of resolving the alleged issue amicably, over a discussion.
Raju’s mother, Manju Devi, denies the allegation of an affair between her son and the muslim girl. She has stated that her son and the girl attended the same coaching class and that it was the muslim girl who had requested Raju to drop her at her home, on the day of the incident. She added that they were both friends and denied that her son was in a romantic relationship.
Manju Devi finds the disgraceful conduct of the local Muslims towards her son, unprovoked and unlawful but stated that she does not want to pursue legal action since none in her family could support her in filing a case and defending it. Sadly, her husband is no more and her son is still a minor. She is concerned for the safety of her son.
(with inputs from Opindia)
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