A deeply disturbing incident of caste-based violence that took place on March 10 in the Tikunia police station area of Lakhimpur Kheri district, Uttar Pradesh, has come to light after the victim’s family released a video on social media threatening to end their lives if an FIR was not registered within 24 hours. Two days after lodging a complaint, no case had been registered, and the accused remained free.
According to the victim’s family, during a marriage ceremony, a group of around 40 people from the Awasthi family forcibly pulled family members off the road, locked them inside a room and subjected them to brutal physical assault. The attackers allegedly hurled casteist abuses throughout the attack. A woman in the family had her hair pulled, was crushed underfoot and was threatened with being shot. The victim also alleged in her complaint that her son’s clothes were smelling of urine, suggesting he too was subjected to humiliation during the assault.
Police arrived at the scene and managed to extract the victims from the locked room, but no arrests were made, and no FIR was registered despite the seriousness of the incident.
Station In-Charge Accused of Pressuring Family to Compromise
What has drawn equal outrage is the alleged conduct of the Tikunia police station in-charge after the incident. The victim’s family and Bhim Army State Coordinator Dr Kuldeep Bhargava alleged that instead of registering a case, the station in-charge was pressuring the family to reach a compromise with the accused and was actively working to protect them. The accused are said to be officials associated with the Bajrang Dal, which the family and activists say explains the alleged police reluctance to act.
The victim’s family released a video on social media detailing the attack and warning that if the FIR was not registered within one day, they would take their own lives. The video quickly went viral, with large numbers of users tagging UP Police and the Director General of Police demanding immediate action.
This story was originally published in theobserverpost.com. Read the full story here.