A 42-year-old woman was brutally assaulted and publicly stripped over a land dispute in Belagavi district of Karnataka, said police on Thursday, adding that the woman’s husband and son were also attacked.
Athani police inspector Ravindra Naikwadi confirmed the development. He said, “We received information about the assault on a woman, her husband, and their son in connection with a dispute over agricultural land.”
The incident took place in Ainapur village of Kagwad taluk, on Wednesday evening, when members of a family reportedly dragged the woman from her farm hut, stripped her, and subjected her to physical violence, said the police.
According to officials, three women “forcibly removed the sari of the woman and thrashed her mercilessly.”
According to police, Suresh Dannolli and Subhash Dannolli, along with at least three women of their family, allegedly assaulted the victim’s husband and son, leaving the latter seriously injured.
“The Dannolli brothers attacked us with sticks and fists, while their female relatives also thrashed us,” one of the family members who was assaulted said.
The family which belongs to a backward community, had been allotted a 3-acre plot on the outskirts of Ainapur by the Karnataka government in 1991. However, the Dannolli brothers allegedly encroached upon some part of their land five years ago, resorting to threats and physical violence whenever the family demanded its return, said people familiar with the matter. Additionally, the perpetrators are accused of encroaching upon a government road adjacent to the victim’s property.
{{/usCountry}}The family which belongs to a backward community, had been allotted a 3-acre plot on the outskirts of Ainapur by the Karnataka government in 1991. However, the Dannolli brothers allegedly encroached upon some part of their land five years ago, resorting to threats and physical violence whenever the family demanded its return, said people familiar with the matter. Additionally, the perpetrators are accused of encroaching upon a government road adjacent to the victim’s property.
{{/usCountry}}Inspector Naikwadi said “Appropriate action will be taken against the accused”. The inspector confirmed that as of now, no official complaint has been filed. He said, “No one from the family has approached the police, however, prompt action would be initiated once a formal complaint is lodged.”
This is not the first such incident in the district. Earlier, a woman was dragged out of her house, paraded naked, tied to an electric pole and thrashed allegedly after her son eloped with another woman of the village.