A Twitter video of cops mercilessly beating up a man in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, went viral on Sunday afternoon. Reportedly, the incident took place in the state’s Etawah district, amid the coronavirus lockdown.
The video shows a constable beating a man lying on the ground, with a stick. The cop can be seen pinning the man to the ground with one foot on his chest. While many bystanders watch, no one intervenes. Towards the end of the video, another cop joins in and beats the man again. Another person is seen standing next to the cops and handing them a stick. The viral video was shot from a terrace of a house in the neighbourhood.
Tweets who shared the video were shocked at the police brutality.
According to a report on the Indian news website News18.com, the video was first tweeted by the opposition Samajwadi Party, which slammed the “inhuman” police force in the state of UP.
The tweet further alleges that the constable had backing from a Station Officer and that the man who was beaten, was an innocent mentally challenged man.
The article reported: “The video, reportedly shot on May 2 at Biba Mau village, was shared by the SP from its official Twitter handle, with the party demanding strict action against the SO along with the constable for assaulting a “mentally-challenged” man.”
While some tweets shared the video saying the man was beaten for violating lockdown rules, according to reports, the police clarified that the man in the video was identified as Sunil Yadav alias Pandit, who has a criminal background.
Yadav was allegedly abusing locals and even threatened to ‘chop them into pieces’, police said. When cops arrived to arrest Yadav, he attacked them after which the personnel started beating him. The police also claim that a cop suffered injuries on his hand due to Yadav’s attack.
As per a report submitted to the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) of Etawah, by senior police officers, Yadav has been accused of attacking his own nephew and the priest of a local temple. The report also mentions that Yadav was undergoing psychiatric treatment in Agra around two years ago. It also specifies that the cop, who has since been suspended, should have not used ‘excessive force’ as seen in the video.
