Assault, urinate on Dalit man face for opposing illegal mining:Sarpanch, his son, and accomplices attacked him with rods and fists in Katni

A Dalit youth was allegedly beaten and humiliated by local villagers for protesting illegal mining near his farmland in Katni. Police have registered a case under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and started investigating four accused. Incident details The incident occurred on October 13 in the Bahoriband police station area. According to the victim’s complaint submitted to Katni SP, he had protested illegal mining on government land at Ramgarha Hill near his farm. The miner, Ram Bihari Haldkar, allegedly abused the youth with caste-based slurs and threatened him. Later that evening, while returning home with his mother, the youth was stopped near the village crematorium by Sarpanch Ramanuj Pandey, his son Pawan Pandey, nephew Satish Pandey, and others. The accused allegedly attacked the youth with kicks, punches, and rods, and during the assault, Pawan Pandey reportedly urinated on the victim’s face. Police action ASP Dr. Santosh Kumar Deharia confirmed that after receiving the complaint, a case was registered under assault and SC/ST Act, and a detailed investigation is underway. Similar past incident A similar incident occurred in Sidhi in July 2023, when a BJP-affiliated youth, Pravesh Shukla, reportedly urinated on a tribal youth while intoxicated. The video of that incident went viral, prompting public outrage. The then Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan intervened, personally meeting the victim and offering support, which helped calm tensions. Community and legal response This latest incident has sparked outrage over the continued targeting of marginalized communities for standing against illegal activities. Authorities are closely monitoring the investigation, and social activists are demanding strict action against the accused.