A group of upper caste minor boys in Gandhinagar assaulted a Dalit youth for displaying his surname on his motorbike.
The incident took place in Palaj village on September 30, during the Navaratri festival. According to the case registered at the Chiloda police station, 18-year-old Mehul Vaghela was returning home on his motorbike after attending the Navaratri festivities. He was stopped by a group of four minor boys from the upper caste Rajput community. They questioned Mehul, who belongs to the Chamar caste, for having his surname on the vehicle. The boys said this was a practice only among the Rajputs. One of the minors then hit Mehul with a stick in the back even as the others began beating him. The injured was later admitted to a hospital, police told The Hindu .
A case was registered under the Indian Penal Code sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (intentional insult), 506 (ii) (criminal intimidation), 114 (abettor present when offence is committed) and section 3(1)(x) of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
S.K. Savani, Deputy Superintendent of Police, said since the offences did attracted a punishment of less than seven years, the minors were not arrested, as per the Supreme Court guidelines.
“We have recorded their statements. We will be sending them a notice at the time of filing the charge sheet before the Juvenile Justice Board,” he said.
Published - October 08, 2014 11:34 pm IST
