Dalit boy forced to lick feet, 8 held as video goes viral

A video of a Class 10 Dalit student being beaten up and made to lick the feet of a man surfaced on social media in Rae Bareli, prompting the police to lodge a case and arrest eight people, officials said on Tuesday.

According to police, on April 10, the boy, a resident of Jagatpur town, was taken to Ramlila Maidan on a motorcycle by his friend.

Police said he was later taken towards Salon Road, from where some other youths took him to a garden.

The accused men beat him up in the garden, they said.

A video of them beating up and forcing the boy to lick the feet of one of the accused was recorded and shared on social media, they said.

After the video went viral, the boy along with his mother reached Kotwali police station and lodged a complaint, they said.

Police, however, did not elaborate on the reasons as to why the boy was assaulted.

An FIR under relevant sections has been registered in the matter and eight accused have been arrested and sent to jail, Dalmau Circle Officer (CO) Ashok Singh said.