Days after a bangle seller was thrashed for his religious identity in Indore district of Madhya Pradesh, another similar case was reported on Thursday from Dewas town. A 36-year-old old hawker, Zaheer Khan, was beaten up by two unidentified people for not showing his Aadhaar card. The victim, a resident of Amlataz village under Hatpipliya Tehsil, lodged an FIR at the local police station alleging that the two men abused and mercilessly thrashed him.
Zaheer, in his complaint, claimed that the abusers warned him not to return to the village. Dewas Superintendent of Police (SP), Shivdayal Singh said the victim was selling toast on his motorcycle when the incident took place. “He told them his name. They also asked him to show his Aadhaar Card. When Zaheer told them that he didn’t have it with him, they started beating him. The men abused him and asked him not to come back to their village,” Singh was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
Police have registered a case under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 294 (using obscene language) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). The two miscreants have not been identified yet and police are searching for the accused.
The authorities also added that they are trying to verify Zaheer’s claims after residents of his village allegedly said they are not aware of any such incident.
This is the second incident within a week in Madhya Pradesh where a bangle seller was allegedly beaten up for his religious identity. On Sunday, 25-year-old Tasleem Ali, a bangle seller in Indore, was beaten up by a group of men after he revealed his Muslim identity.
Tasleem was later arrested by the police after being booked under the Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Police also arrested three people for assaulting him.
