Even as Dalits in India continue to vie hard for better treatment in the society, a Dalit man in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh was harassed and forced to drink urine by farmers of upper caste after he refused to harvest their crops.
Though the incident took place in Azampur Bisauliya village of Badaun district April 23 when the Dalit man was harvesting his own crops, an FIR was filed Saturday, April 28.
The 43-year-old Dalit named Sitaram Valmiki, who has a small farm, was harvesting his wheat crop when a member of the Thakur community asked him to harvest his crops. When he refused to harvest his fields, a few men of the upper caste reportedly thrashed him and ill-treated the man.
"Vijay Singh wanted me to harvest his field. He didn't want to do it himself because the weather was bad. When I refused, they started beating me... They also pulled my mustache and forced urine in my mouth," the Indian Express quoted Valmiki as saying.
Valmiki also told news agency ANI that the accused men tied him, dragged him to the village and beat him with slippers.
The police confirmed that the Dalit farmer had been assaulted and an investigation is on.
"The preliminary enquiry has found the allegation of assault to be true. Probe into the other allegations is on," SP (Badaun) Kumar told the news outlet.
Vijay and the other accused men, who were identified as Vikram Singh, Sompal Singh and Pinku, were arrested Monday for mistreating Valmiki.
However, Valmiki is not the only Dalit who has faced atrocities in the hands of upper caste men in India.
Dalit man from #Badaun alleges he was assaulted & forced to drink urine by a group of men after he denied to harvest their crops, says, 'They also tied me to a tree and pulled my moustache.' SSP Ashok Kumar says, 'case has been registered & probe is underway.' pic.twitter.com/7vTgYQ7vhc
— ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) April 30, 2018
Dalit bridegroom attacked for riding a horse
On Sunday night, a Dalit bridegroom and his family were attacked by people from an upper caste community, when they took out a pre-wedding procession in Rajasthan's Bhilwara district.
The bridegroom was thrashed for riding a mare. The cops, who have been accused of not helping the family, have said that an FIR has been lodged under IPC Sections including 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 341 (wrongful restraint), 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty) along with Sections of SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
