Maharashtra SHOCKER: 4 Dalit Men Beaten, Hung Upside Down From Tree Over Theft-Suspicion | WATCH

New Delhi: A disturbing incident has come to the fore from a village in Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra where four Dalit men were reportedly hung upside down from a tree thrashed with sticks by at least six men after the attackers accused them of stealing some pigeons and a goat.

A video of the horrifying incident that went viral on social media, showed the young Dalit men being assaulted with sticks while they are hung upside down from a tree. The youths were also stripped half-naked, the video showed.

A heart-wrenching incident happened in Maharashtra's Ahmednagar, Suspected of stealing goats and pigeons, Dalit youths were stripped and mercilessly beaten by hanging upside down on a tree. pic.twitter.com/p8rGxGbgVp

— The Dalit Voice (@ambedkariteIND) August 27, 2023

According to the police, the incident occured in Haregaon village of Shrirampur taluka when the a group of six persons from the village allegedly forcibly took four Dalit men, all in their 20s, from their homes on August 25.

The victims were hanged upside down from a tree and beaten up with sticks over suspicion of stealing a goat and some pigeons, an official from Ahmednagar police said, according to news agency PTI.

After the video went viral on social media, police took cognizance and arrested one suspect in connection with the case on Saturday. The official said that five other persons involved in the attack are still absconding and searches have been launched to nab them at the earliest.

The accused have been identified as Yuvraj Galande, Manoj Bodake, Pappu Parkhe, Deepak Gaikwad, Durgesh Vaidya and Raju Borage, the official said.

One of the accused allegedly shot a video of the attack, which later surfaced on social media, he said.

The injured men were later taken to a nearby hospital, the official said, adding that one of the victims Shubham Magade lodged a complaint with the police.

A case under sections 307 (attempt to murder), 364 (kidnapping) and other relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code and Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act has been registered, he said.

The incident comes amid reports of a similar atrocity from Madhya Pradesh’s Sagar district where a 20-year-old Dalit man was allegedly beaten to death while his 49-year-old mother was stripped and assaulted after the mother-son duo refused to withdraw a sexual harassment complaint.

(With PTI inputs)