Jaunpur: After a shocking case of caste violence involving an acid attack in Saharanpur, Jaunpur’s Dalit community accused the Badlapur police of brutally flogging their women. A viral video on social media shows how the women received heavy blows along their thighs and backs.
Women laid bare the red welts all over their upper legs and backs in the video that went viral on March 24. According to The Quint Hindi, the women suffered these injuries when the police arrived to resolve a local dispute. Instead of concluding the matter peacefully, they alleged that the police stripped them and the young children present there to brutally assault them.
Given the heinous nature of the crime, the video sparked widespread outrage among people. Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad condemned the BJP-led government and asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and UP Chief Minister Ajay Bisht (Yogi Adityanath) whether this was the future for Dalits in their “Ram Rajya”. Similarly, Opposition party Samajwadi Party shared a blurred version of the video demanding strict action against the police.
However, like the Saharanpur incident, local police claimed that the incident was distorted by the injured person. In a video statement, the Circle Officer said that a dispute was reported in Ram Deoria village of Badlapur. He claimed that the women were not attacked and went through a medical test before being sent to jail. He further said that women were not assaulted in the police station either. The officer stressed that the women were not treated indecently.
Yet, another video of the night of the incident shows how the police were openly hostile against the people who suffered injuries. In the clipping, a person requests the police to take a bleeding woman to the hospital for proper attention but the officers respond with crass words.
According to Jagran, villagers Jialal Gautam and Jiyawan Gautam were in a conflict as to who cut the banana tree. The PRB team arrived at the place to diffuse the situation but the villagers allegedly attacked the officer. After Head Constable Rajesh Yadav and driver Raj Bihari were injured, the police registered a case against a dozen people on the complaint of Jialal’s daughter Radha and head constable Rajesh. As such, the police arrested six women and two men. Sabrang India
