Dalit man beaten up allegedly for touching upper-caste person's two-wheeler in Karnataka

VIJAYAPURA: A 28-year-old Dalit man was allegedly beaten up for merely touching the two-wheeler belonging to an upper-caste person in Minajgi village near Talikoti in Vijayapura.

After the family members filed a complaint, the local police have registered a case under the SC/ST Atrocities Act, however, no arrests have been made. The incident took place on Saturday.

Kashinath Talwar (28), a daily wage worker by profession, a resident of Minajgi village of Talikoti, was going for work along with his father when the incident took place.

In a complaint, Yankappa Talwar, father of Kashinath, alleged that, “A group of villagers trashed my son accusing him of merely touching a motorcycle that was owned by an upper-caste person, which was parked near Chennamma Circle. The people also assaulted me and my son’s wife and his daughter when we tried to rescue him from beating. The men used offensive words against our caste and threatened to set our community houses on fire,” accused Yankappa. A complaint has been registered in Talikoti Police Station.       

Meanwhile, the villagers claimed that “He was warned many times for his intolerable behavior after we found him showing his private parts to women and for touching them inappropriately. Enraged villagers thrashed him as he misbehaved with women on Saturday.” 

Speaking to The New Indian Express, Shantveer E, Deputy Superintendent of Police, Basavana Bagewadi Sub-division, said that, “After the complaint of family members, we have booked the cases under the SC/ST Atrocities Act. We have identified at least 12 people that thrashed the 28-year-old. Special teams have been formed to nab the accused. Even a group of women from the same village are filing a complaint against Kashinath for his misbehavior. The investigation is underway and it is too early to comment,” stated DySP Shantveer.