Caste violence: Three Dalit teens stripped, brutally beaten up in Chittorgarh, six arrested

Three Dalit teenagers were paraded naked in public and brutally beaten up in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan on Saturday by a vicious mob for allegedly stealing a motorcycle from a upper caste man, reported the NDTV. [caption id=“attachment_2606612” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. AFP[/caption] Accusing the boys of stealing a bike, the angry mob tied them to a tree, thrashed and stripped for half-an-hour while the boys were seen cowering in fear and begging for help, the report added. An eye-witness even shot a video of the entire incident. According to The Times of India, even though the entire incident took place in full public view, nobody came to their rescue. The report stated that the police showed up about an hour later and rushed them to the civil hospital. “Locals stripped and beat them after they caught them with the stolen motorcycle on Saturday in Laxmipura. Police rescued them and brought them to the local police station along with the motorcycle,” SP, Chittorgarh, Prasan Kumar Khamsera said on Tuesday. Khamsera emphasised that “it was not a caste-related issue.” The boys, between the ages of 15 and 18 were beaten by the villagers because they caught them with a stolen bike. According to the police, six of those who thrashed them have been arrested and others are being identified. Gaj Singh, SHO, Bassi police station told The Times of India, that the teens confessed to lifting the bike. “A case of theft has been filed against them and they have been sent to correction home,” he said. The boys belong to the Kanjar community, which generally lives on the fringes of the city. They were going to their village on the stolen motorcycle which was identified by some youths of Laxmipura village who caught them. With inputs from PTI