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Dalit woman stripped, beaten in Satara district
In a gruesome incident, a Dalit widow was stripped, tied to a tree and badly beaten by the members of an upper caste family in Mulgaon village of Phatan taluka of Satara district in western Maharashtra, after her son reportedly eloped with a girl belonging to the aggrieved family.
Reports said that the incident took place in the presence of entire village on Monday. The members of Desai family targeted the woman, Rekha Chavan (42), after they suspected that the 22-year-old had eloped with the “minor” girl from their family, in November last year.
There were two versions as to the incident. While one version was that the victim dalit woman was stripped and beaten by higher cast members after tying her to a tree, the other said that she was paraded naked in the village. The injured Chavan was rushed to Krishna rural hospital in the nearby Kudal town.
What has shocked many is that the incident took place in Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan’s home district of Satara. More was shocking is the fact that the police had initially refused to register a complaint by the vicrim woman in connection with the incident. Meanwhile, the Phatan police have registered a case against five members of Desai family — three women and two men.
Later on Wednesday evening, the police arrested Kisan Desai(45), Hambirrao Desai(39), their wives Shantabai, 35, and Sunita(27) and a relative Vimal Desai,32, under four sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Though the local police declined to confirm or deny if the woman was paraded naked, they have among other charges booked the five persons under section 354 of IPC (assault or criminal force to woman with an intent to outrage her modesty).
“We have recorded the statement of Chavan and will speak to eyewitnesses and Desai family to ascertain the circumstances leading to the incident,” a local police officer F N Naikawade said.
In a related development, Satara district collector Dr N Ramaswami said the preliminary investigations had revealed that she had not been stripped and paraded naked as alleged by the victim woman. He, however, added that the victim woman had indeed been beaten up which was ‘serious’.
In a gruesome incident, a Dalit widow was stripped, tied to a tree and badly beaten by the members of an upper caste family in Mulgaon village of Phatan taluka of Satara district in western Maharashtra, after her son reportedly eloped with a girl belonging to the aggrieved family.
Reports said that the incident took place in the presence of entire village on Monday. The members of Desai family targeted the woman, Rekha Chavan (42), after they suspected that the 22-year-old had eloped with the “minor” girl from their family, in November last year.
There were two versions as to the incident. While one version was that the victim dalit woman was stripped and beaten by higher cast members after tying her to a tree, the other said that she was paraded naked in the village. The injured Chavan was rushed to Krishna rural hospital in the nearby Kudal town.
What has shocked many is that the incident took place in Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan’s home district of Satara. More was shocking is the fact that the police had initially refused to register a complaint by the vicrim woman in connection with the incident. Meanwhile, the Phatan police have registered a case against five members of Desai family — three women and two men.
Later on Wednesday evening, the police arrested Kisan Desai(45), Hambirrao Desai(39), their wives Shantabai, 35, and Sunita(27) and a relative Vimal Desai,32, under four sections of the Indian Penal Code.
Though the local police declined to confirm or deny if the woman was paraded naked, they have among other charges booked the five persons under section 354 of IPC (assault or criminal force to woman with an intent to outrage her modesty).
“We have recorded the statement of Chavan and will speak to eyewitnesses and Desai family to ascertain the circumstances leading to the incident,” a local police officer F N Naikawade said.
In a related development, Satara district collector Dr N Ramaswami said the preliminary investigations had revealed that she had not been stripped and paraded naked as alleged by the victim woman. He, however, added that the victim woman had indeed been beaten up which was ‘serious’.
