Badaun (Uttar Pradesh), May 1 (DC): A Dalit man was allegedly beaten and forced to drink urine by a group of men after he refused to harvest their crops in Uttar Pradesh's Badaun district.

Sitaram Valmiki, who has a small farm, was harvesting his wheat crop on April 23 when farmers of the 'upper caste' asked him to harvest their crops first. After he refused, they dragged him "all the way to the village and thrashed him with sandals," he told news agency ANI. The farmers also tied him to a tree, pulled out his moustache and forced him to drink urine, he alleged.

Sitaram's wife went to the police after neighbours alerted her.

According to a report in NDTV, the police have booked four farmers - Vijay Singh, Vikram Singh, Sompal Singh and Pinku - for torturing the Dalit man.

After the complaint, Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Ashok Kumar said, "a case has been registered and probe is underway."

This is not the first time such incidents against Dalits have been reported.

On Sunday, a Dalit man was allegedly beaten up for riding a horse during his wedding procession in Rajasthan's Bhilwara district.

A case has been registered under SC/ST Act and seven people have been arrested, the police said.