A 35-year-old tribal woman was allegedly stripped and she and her husband were thrashed by four persons after the couple’s goats entered a farm of one of them in Ahmednagar district, police said on Wednesday.
No arrest has been made in connection with the incident that took place on September 12 at Bhangaon village, a local police official said.
A video of the incident has gone viral on social media. In the footage, the woman and her husband, both belonging to the tribal Pardhi community, are purportedly seen being beaten with sticks by the four persons.
The couple and their children were feeding their goats when the cattle strayed into the farm of one Jaysing Wagaskar, who hails from the Maratha community, the police official said.
An enraged Wagaskar along with his two relatives and an associate caught hold of the family and allegedly stripped the woman in front of her husband and children, the official said, adding that the accused then beat up the couple with sticks.
While beating the couple, the accused also groped the woman, the official said, quoting the victim’s complaint.
The accused also passed abusive comments over the couple’s caste, he said.
The incident was recorded on mobile phone by an unidentified person and uploaded on social media, he said.
Based on the complaint, offences were registered on September 14 against the four accused under IPC sections 354 (molestation), 324 (voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means), 504 (intentional insult with an intent to provoke breach of peace) and 506 (criminal intimidation), he said.
The accused, who are yet to be arrested, have also been booked under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, he added.
