Furore over Dalit boys being paraded nude in Maha village

MUMBAI: A furore has been sparked in the state over a shocking incident of three minor Dalit boys being stripped, beaten and paraded nude in a Jalgaon village for allegedly swimming in a village well.

The incident occurred on Sunday, but came to the fore only after some videos of the boys’ parading in the Vakadi village went viral even as the authorities swung into action.

The incident came as a major embarrassment for the ruling BJPShiv Sena combine even as Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is on a tour of Dubai, Canada and US to attract investments.

State Social Justice Minister Dilip Kamble told media persons that two persons have been arrested in this connection and further investigations are underway.

Union Minister Ramdas Atha- wale condemned the incident and demanded “stringent action against the perpetrators of the atrocity on the boys”.

Several Dalit and political leaders from the opposition Congress and ruling BJP, including ex-minister Eknath Khadse, and other leaders from various parties, have condemned the incident and demanded that the culprits be booked under the SC/ST Act.

Former CM Ashok Chavan and former state Minister Laxman Dhoble, terming the incident as unfortunate, said that such incidents are on the rise.

Meanwhile, Gujarat legislator and Dalit leader Jignesh Mewani likened the Wakadi developments to the horrific April 2016 incident in his state’s Una.

People across the political and social spectrum expressed outrage over the incident.