Man arrested for stripping, thrashing Dalit children

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, February 20

The police yesterday arrested Ashurbanpal Singh Latti, who is accused of stripping and thrashing five Dalit children for plucking radish at Sohian Kalan village.

He was presented in the court, which sent him to judicial remand.

Ashurbanpal was booked for hurting religious sentiments on February 14.

A case under Sections 341, 323 and 295-A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered against him at the Majitha police station on the complaint of Ranjit Singh, father of one of the children.

Mohit Kumar, SHO, Majitha police station, said, “We arrested the accused yesterday and presented him in the court today. It sent him to judicial remand.”

Five children were allegedly stripped naked and thrashed by a farmer as they had plucked radish from his field on February 11.

A villager recorded a video in which the children, all baptised Sikhs, accused Ashurbanpal of assaulting them. 

In the video, which had gone viral, the children alleged that Ashurbanpal also forced them to run for almost 3 km towards Bal village while he chased them on a scooter.

The children said, “They were chasing kites and rushed to Ashurbanpal's fields when a kite landed there. One of us uprooted a radish plant. Infuriated, the accused forced us to remove our clothes. He also hit us on back.”