Dad in lawsuit says son was branded at Sugar Land temple

A Sugar Land father who said his 11-year-old son was branded with hot metal during a religious ritual is now suing a Hindu temple and its parent organization.

Vijay Cheruvu alleges the child was burned as part of a ceremony at the Ashtalakshmi Temple in Sugar Land, according to the lawsuit filed April 1. The incident allegedly occurred Aug. 5.

Cheruvu, who has joint custody of his son, said he discovered infected burns on both of the boy’s shoulders a week after he’d visited the temple.

“(That day) my son came back to me and said ‘we had a ceremony, I got stickers’” Cheruvu said.

Around a week later, the boy said his shoulders hurt, and Cheruvu said he discovered burn marks. By then the injuries were infected, the lawsuit alleges.

“He was almost crying, but he’s at that age when he doesn’t want us to know he’d been crying,” Cheruvu said.

According to Harris County court records, the child told police his mother had taken him to the temple for a dedication ceremony for a new statue.

He told police they were there to listen to a speech by a religious leader.

At one point, the child said, men and women were divided into two lines. He said he did not know what was happening at the front of the line until he got there, when the leader picked up a metal brand that had been in charcoal, placed it onto a leaf before applying it to one shoulder, then repeating the process for the other shoulder, according to court records.

The lawsuit claims employees of the temple were negligent and should have stopped the boy from participating. Medical care was also not provided, the suit states.

A spokesperson at the temple did not immediately comment, but said they are preparing a response.

It is illegal under the Texas Health and Safety Code to even tattoo a child, Cheruvu’s attorney, Andrew Williams, said in a phone interview.

“It’s not a decision that any adult should be making for a child, to be burned,” Williams said. “These were third-degree burns.”

Cheruvu, who himself is a Hindu, said he had never heard of such a ritual.

He said the child is undergoing therapy and expressed deep anger and depression about his injuries.

When Cheruvu booked an appointment with the child’s pediatrician, the doctor insisted that the injuries be reported to police, he said.

Charges of injury to a child were brought against the child’s mother. A grand jury declined to indict her in January, Harris County court records show.

“My client never had any idea that her child would be harmed in any way,” said Ed McClees, the attorney for the child’s mother.

Cheruvu and the child have consulted with a doctor and have explored options for removing or covering the scars, Williams said.