Petrol Pump Owners Arrested in MP for Lashing Dalit Employee

Owners of a petrol pump in Madhya Pradesh were arrested after a video showing them lashing a Dalit man went viral.

Petrol pump. 

(Photo: IANS)

Owners of a petrol pump in Hoshangabad, Madhya Pradesh were arrested on 2 July after a video showing them lashing a Dalit man went viral. This video, in fact, was shot by the owners themselves on a mobile phone. The video shows victim Ajay Ahirwar, a former employee at the petrol pump, being brutally lashed with a hunter (whip) by the owners, Deepak Sahu and Chintu Sahu.

Despite his pleas, the owners continued thrashing the man as shown in the video. Speaking to the news agency ANI, Ahirwar alleged:

I met with an accident and didn’t go to work for six days. The two Sahus came to my house and dragged me to the petrol pump. There I was tied and lashed with a hunter for five minutes.

Ajay Ahirwar, Victim

When asked why he did not file a police complaint on the day of the incident, Ahirwar added:

They threatened me to not to go the police. Out of fear, I ran to my uncle’s house in Pawarkheda (6 km from Hoshangabad) and stayed hidden for a few days.

The police department of Hoshangabad booked Deepak and Chintu Sahu under Indian Penal Code section 360 (kidnapping) and section 342 (wrongful confinement). Assistant Superintendent of Hoshangabad, Rakesh Khan, said to ANI:

We have confiscated the hunter used for beating Ajay Ahirwar. Both Deepak and Chintu are arrested under ST/SC Act and will be presented in the court.

Rakesh Khan, ASP Hoshangabad