SRIKAKULAM: A Dalit youth was kicked and assaulted by the circle inspector of Kasibugga police station in Srikakulam district when he went to the police station to lodge a complaint with regard to a land dispute. The CI was placed under suspension by senior police officials after the video of the police officer kicking the youth went viral.
According to information reaching here, the family of Marri Jagan, a Dalit youth from Tekkalipatnam village of Palasa mandal, had a dispute over land patta with some others in the village. On Tuesday evening, Jagan and his mother went to the Kasibugga police station to lodge a complaint.
Though it is yet to be known what transpired inside, Kasibugga circle inspector Venugopal kicked Jagan out of the police station and slapped him. Jagan's aged mother came to his rescue and stopped the police officer from beating her son.
As the video went viral in social media, deputy chief minister and revenue minister Dharmana Krishna Das directed the district Superintendent of Police Amit Bardar and DIG LKV Ranga Rao to take action against the police officer.
Addressing the media on Wednesday at district police office, Amit Bardar condemned the behaviour of the CI against the youth and apologised to the victim’s family on behalf of the police. Stating that the circle inspector was placed under suspension, the SP assured that he would take measures to prevent recurrence of such instances in future.
Opposition leader N Chandrababu Naidu, tweeting the video of the attack on the Dalit youth, said, "Shocking! Under orders from YSRCP Leaders, a Dalit man who went to lodge a complaint at the Police Station in Palasa, Srikakulam, was kicked & slapped by police even as his mother wailed & tried protecting her son. When will this YSRCP sponsored brutality & madness stop in AP?"
The AP police, through its Twitter handle, denied any political angle in the incident and tweeted, "An incident was reported regarding Police behaviour with Youth in Srikakulam Dist. Inspector Kasibugga has been suspended for his highhanded #behaviour. An enquiry has also been ordered to go into the facts. Such behaviour cannot be tolerated within #APPolice & @POLICESRIKAKULM."