Berhampur: Police have arrested three more persons, including prime accused Rajesh Samal (20) of Jahada, for the alleged torture of two Dalit men, Babula Nayak and Bulu Nayak, over false cattle smuggling claim at a village of Odisha’s Ganjam district on June 22.
With this, the number of people arrested went up to 12.
Efforts are on to nab others involved in the case, Dharakote police station IIC Chandrika Swain said.
The development came even as a fact-finding team of the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) led by Rama Chandra Kadam met the victims, who were subjected to inhumane and brutal treatment, at Singipur village and held discussions with locals and police about the incident.
The incident occurred when they were transporting a cow and two calves on a cargo auto-rickshaw to their village from Haripur as part of a dowry for an upcoming wedding in their family. A mob accosted them in Kharigumma village, alleging illegal cattle transport, and demanded Rs 30,000. When they expressed their inability to pay, the group tied them with ropes, beat them, partially shaved their heads at a nearby salon, and forced them to crawl 2 km to Jahada village, where they were allegedly made to eat grass and drink drain water at the chhak.
The video, showing the two men crawling with grass clamped between their teeth, had gone viral, triggering widespread outrage in political circles.
Preliminary investigations indicated that the attackers’ motive was not animal protection but extortion since they had demanded Rs 30,000 from the duo to release the cattle.
While the Congress alleged a total collapse of law and order situation in the state and demanded for immediate steps to ensure the safety of Dalits, tribals and minorities, senior BJP leader and former assembly deputy speaker Ram Chandra Panda said that swift action has been taken and urged the Opposition to refrain from politicising the incident.
