HUBBALLI: A 15-year-old boy was forced to perform a ritual called 'Bettalu Seve' (nude worship) after his father defaulted on loan repayment.
'Bettalu Seve' is banned in the state.
The horrific ritual took place in Koppal village, around 350 km away from Bengaluru, in June this year. However, it has come to light after the video of the 'ritual' went viral lately.
The FIR lodged with the Koppal rural police station on October 2 states that the person, named as the accused in the case, disrobed the boy, and shot the video.
Police said the accused had lent a loan to the victim's father for constructing a house. But the boy's father was unable to repay the loan amount. In turn, the accused took the boy, who was working in Hubbali as a daily wage worker, to perform the ritual, after convincing him that 'Bettalu Seve' would help his father free himself from debts.
The boy trusted the person and consented.
According to the victim's statement, he, along with the accused persons, had been to Hubbali for a pipeline laying work at Jal Jeevan Mission in Timmasagara village. At the time, when he was working in different cities to pool money to help bail out his father from debts, the accused persons convinced him to undergo the ritual.
The boy thereafter went to Mangaluru to work on a private construction site.
The parents were shocked when the video of the 'ritual' went viral. They scoured the village but the persons who were behind the ritual could not be found. Finally, the family went to the police. A police team has been formed to hunt for the absconding persons.