Patna: A college student was stripped naked and allegedly paraded by her colleagues on suspicion of stealing a mobile phone in Jharkhand, prompting the government to order an investigation.
Police have arrested two people in connection with the case.
The incident took place over the weekend at the hostel where the tribal woman stays, in the Dumka district of Jharkhand.
However, a formal case was registered only on Monday after the local media reported the matter.
The victim, who is studying at Santhal Pargana Women’s College, comes from a tribal community.
As per reports, a student residing in one of the college’s hostels lost her cell phone some days ago.
She suspected the victim of stealing the device and reported the matter to her friends.
Subsequently, a court was held in the hostel in the weekend during which she was held “guilty” of stealing the mobile phone.
The court imposed a fine of Rs18,600 (Dh1,073) on the victim girl and asked her to pay the money by August 25.
Instead of waiting for the deadline, however, some of her colleagues pounced upon her, assaulted her severely and then paraded her through the hostel after stripping her naked, the victim told the police. They also shot the video of her being paraded through the hostel floors.
The story took a serious turn after one of her friends uploaded the video on the social media which went viral.
On Monday, the police registered a case in this connection.
Taking the matter seriously, the Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das has sought a detailed over the issue within 24 hours, terming the incident very shameful.
“A three-member committee is probing the case. The committee has been told to submit the report within 24 hours,” the chief minister said adding the guilty would not be spared.
Meanwhile, the police have arrested two persons, including the hostel warden, in this connection.
“This is a very serious issue. The guilt wouldn’t be spared at any cost,” the local district superintendent of police Mayur Patel told the media on Tuesday.
Similar incident was reported from Bihar in June this year when a seven-year-old girl was beaten up badly and dragged by hairs on the streets by an angry crowd for allegedly stealing a mobile phone.
The girl could be rescued after someone informed the police about the incident. The incident had taken place in Gaya district of Bihar which borders Jharkhand state.
