HYDERABAD: In yet another case of crimes against children, a shopkeeper reportedly smeared chilli powder on the private parts of a 10-year-old boy, allegedly as punishment for stealing soft drinks from his shop, and recorded videos of the act. This apart, the accused, Krishna Kanth, allegedly stripped the minor of his clothes and also threatened to rub the chilli powder on his eyes. Taking cognisance of the complaint filed by the victim’s mother, Habeebnagar police arrested the shopkeeper on Tuesday. He was later remanded to 14-day judicial custody.
Habeebnagar Sub-Inspector (SI) M Gayatri, who is the Investigation Officer (IO), said the 10-year-old would frequent Krishna’s shop as it is situated close to the basti, where he lives. His parents were also acquaintances with the accused.However, when the boy turned up at his shop on Monday evening, Krishna spotted the 10-year-old trying to steal a soft drink and caught him red-handed, the SI added.
Subsequently, he started hurling accusations and threats at the boy, who admitted to having stolen items from the shop upon being questioned, she said.In a bid to punish the 10-year-old, Krishna took him to his house situated 200 metres away from his shop, and stripped the clothes off the boy’s body, Gayatri said, adding that the accused had tied the boy’s hands and filmed the entire act.
While holding the boy’s hands, Krishna reportedly threatened to put some chilli powder in his eyes, but since the boy was constantly trying to wriggle out of the accused’s grip, a bit of the powder fell on the boy’s private parts. It was entirely accidental, Krishna told the police.Later, he shared the video with the boy’s mother, who lodged a complaint with the police. A case under Sections 324, 342 and 506 of the IPC and Section 12 of the POCSO Act was registered against Krishna.