Man assaulted, forced to chant slogans in Khajuri Khas; one held

A man was allegedly kicked, punched, and forced to chant “Hindustan Zindabad” and “Pakistan Murdabad” slogans in north-east Delhi’s Khajuri Khas by a person who is an accused in the riots that took place in 2020, police said on Wednesday.

A video of the incident, which allegedly happened on Tuesday, was widely circulated on social media after which police registered a case and arrested the attacker on Wednesday. Police identified the attacker, purportedly caught on camera, as Ajay Goswami, a resident of Old Garhi village and a dairy trader, said Sanjay Kumar Sain, deputy commissioner of police (north-east).

The officer said Goswami is an accused in the 2020 north-east Delhi riots, but clarified that his alleged involvement in the riots has no connection to the latest alleged assault. Police did not immediately share details on Goswami’s nature of involvement in the riots or the current status of that case.

Unwilling to identify the victim, Sain said victim too has a criminal record and was allegedly involved in a murder and robbery case. Another police officer, who asked not to be identified, said the victim is a Muslim man. “On Tuesday, the man was allegedly trying to enter Goswami’s dairy, purportedly with the an intention to steal, when he was caught,” said the officer.

Police, however, have not registered any case of theft or attempted theft against the victim.

In any case, the DCP said Goswami beat up the victim while another accused, Deepak, recorded the video on his mobile phone. The video, which was widely shared on social media, showed Goswami allegedly punching the victim in the abdomen, kicking him in the face and other parts of the body, and throwing him around.

HT could not independently verify the authenticity of the video.

As he beat the victim, he also kept asking him to chant ”Hindustan Zinadabad” and ”Pakistan Murdabad” slogans, which the victim repeatedly did while pleading for an end to the assault, the video purportedly showed.

Once the video landed on the internet and was brought to the police’s notice, the police took cognizance of it and began probing its origin. The victim and assailants were eventually identified by Wednesday after which Goswami was arrested. Deepak is yet to be arrested.

A case of voluntarily causing hurt and wrongful restraint has been registered at Khajuri Khas police station.