A disturbing incident unfolded in the town of Bharthana in Uttar Pradesh’s Etawah district, where a young man from the Dalit community was subjected to public humiliation and assault. The victim, identified as Sumit Diwakar, lodged a formal complaint claiming that on 8 October he was stopped in Rani Nagar locality by three men—Nandan Gupta, Laddu Gupta and Satyendra Kumar, residents of Purana Bharthana Mohalla.
According to Sumit’s statement to the police, the accused hurled caste-based slurs at him, forced him to assume the “murga” (rooster) posture in the middle of a road, brutally beat him and threatened to kill him. He said the attackers even recorded the distressing spectacle on video, which later went viral on social media.
Following the complaint and the circulation of the footage, the local Bharthana police registered a case under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act (SC/ST Act) along with relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code.
The Superintendent of Police (Rural), Shri Shree Chandra, confirmed that the incident was taken seriously; one of the accused has reportedly been arrested and the video is under examination as part of the investigation. He also clarified that while the viral clip clearly shows the assault, one allegation made by the victim of his face being urinated upon has not been corroborated by the evidence so far.
Residents in the area say the incident has rattled the local Dalit community, with many expressing fear and frustration about the slow pace of official action. A number of activists have criticized the silence around caste-based violence, saying that such public acts of humiliation reflect a culture of impunity. The police have appealed to the public not to share rumours and to allow the investigation to proceed based on verified facts.
The viral nature of the video has once again highlighted how digital exposure is forcing authorities to act but also exposing how deeply entrenched caste-based abuse remains in certain regions. As the investigation continues, community leaders are calling for the prompt arrest of all accused and for the state to ensure protection and justice for the victim, so that such incidents do not continue unchecked.
This story was originally published in muslimmirror.com.