India - Uttar-pradesh: Bajrang Dal Mob at work man tonsured, garlanded with shoes, paraded for ‘converting 3, feeding beef’

The Times of India

Man tonsured, paraded for ‘converting 3, feeding beef’
Faiz Rahman Siddiqui & Arindam Ghosh | TNN | Jan 30, 2016, 04.07 AM IST

KANPUR/JHANSI: A man was on Friday tonsured, garlanded with shoes, and paraded on the streets of Orai in Uttar Pradesh, allegedly by Bajrang Dal activists who accused him of converting three Hindu men to Christianity and forcibly making them consume beef.

Deputy inspector general (DIG), Jhansi range, Sharad Sachan said three FIRs had been lodged in connection with the incident, including two against Bajrang Dal members, who have not been named, and one against the alleged victim, Awdhesh Savita. No arrest had been made at the time of going to press.

"On Friday afternoon, a mob of nearly 200 men, allegedly comprising Bajrang Dal activists, reached the house of Awdhesh at Randar in Jalaun district, brought him out forcibly, and took him to Orai (district headquarters)," a police source said.

"He was paraded through the town after his hair, eyebrows and moustache were shaved off, and garlanded with shoes," the source added.

When police reached the spot and tried to take Awdhesh to the police post, the crowd refused to let him go. Subsequently, senior officers arrived with reinforcements, including police and PAC personnel. He was then taken to Orai Kotwali police station, the source said.

The mob reportedly accused Awdhesh of luring three Hindu men to a church in Kachwaha village of Mirzapur district on the pretext of attending a satsang and converting them to Christianity.


Police said a local Bajrang Dal member brought forward one of the three alleged converts, identified as Sangam Jatav, at Orai, and asked him to narrate the entire story in public on Friday. Jatav was reportedly "the only person who managed to escape the clutches of the men in Mirzapur".

The Bajrang Dal member also claimed that all the three were forced to consume beef against their will. Not only this, Sangam has also alleged that pictures of Hindu gods and goddesses were thrown on the floor and they were made to walk on them, reports said.


"Prima facie, Sangam's allegations appear suspicious, but we are investigating the matter," Jalaun SP N Kolanchi said.