Times of India
 
KANPUR, Oct 24: In a shocking incident, a 13-year-old Dalit boy was chained to a tractor and dragged around Basaura village under the Shrinagar police station in Mahoba district for allegedly holding a minor girl’s hand on Wednesday.

According to reports, the boy, identified as Nandu (name changed), son of Dasaiya Ahirwar, suffered serious injuries and was admitted to a hospital where doctors stated his condition to be stable.

The incident took place on Wednesday when Nandu and an 11-year-old girl, daughter of one Sukhlal Rajput of the same village, were bathing near a village well.

The victim’s father, narrating the incident to TOI on phone, said the girl’s father, along with his relatives, arrived there and after mercilessly assaulting Nandu with sticks, forcibly confined him to his place for several hours. They accused Nandu of teasing the girl. The boy’s family, however, claimed that he had just held her hands.

In the evening, the relatives of the girl tied Nandu to a tractor and dragged him in the village till he became unconscious. ‘‘When Nandu started bleeding profusely, they dumped him near a pond,’’ Dasaiya said.

When he tried to resist, the members of the girl’s family threatened us with dire consequences and passed caste-based remarks on us, he added.

The boy’s relatives blamed cops for arriving hours after the incident. ‘‘A police team reached the spot, but none in the village was prepared to speak about the incident,’’ said a relative.

Mahoba police chief RP Singh said: ‘‘We registered an FIR under Section 342, 323, 504, 506 of the Indian Penal Code besides Prevention of Atrocities (Scheduled Castes and Tribes) Act against Sukhlal Rajput.’’ He later surrendered before the court on Thursday.