Man paraded naked over alleged affair

By Sumesh Rajan | March 14, 2025

 

A Dalit man in the Indian state of Gujarat’s Sabarkantha district was stripped naked, assaulted, and paraded through a village by a group of men from the so-called upper caste, including the husband of a woman with whom he was allegedly having an extramarital affair.

 

The incident, which occurred on March 11 in Vadol village near Idar town, came to police attention only on March 13 after a video of the attack went viral on social media.

 

Authorities have since booked 15 individuals under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Nine of the accused have been detained, confirmed Idar Police Inspector Chetan Rathod.

 

Incident Details­­

 According to the police complaint filed by the 32-year-old victim, he was working at a cold storage facility when he stepped out around 11 pm on March 11, to make tea. At that moment, a group led by the woman’s husband, Sanjay Ishwar Thakor, confronted him. The victim attempted to flee but was captured, verbally abused, and physically assaulted. The attackers then dragged him near a temple, accused him of an affair, and displayed a purported photo of him with the woman.

 

The group stripped the victim, paraded him through the village, and later took him to an isolated spot where they forced him to sign a document before releasing him. Out of fear, the victim initially told doctors he had been injured in a fall, preventing an immediate medico-legal case. However, after the video surfaced, police intervened and encouraged him to file a complaint.

 

Legal Action and Charges

The accused, including Sanjay Ishwar Thakor, Kishan Sendhaji Thakor, and Manoj alias Manaji Somaji Thakor, among others, were charged under multiple sections of the BNS, including voluntarily causing hurt (115(2)), kidnapping (137(2)), rioting (191(2)), criminal intimidation (351(3)), and dacoity (310(2)), alongside provisions of the Atrocities Act.

 

Pattern of Caste-Based Violence

This incident is part of a broader pattern of caste-based violence in India. Reports indicate a rising trend in crimes against Scheduled Castes. According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), crimes against Dalits increased by 13.1% in 2022, with BJP-ruled states such as Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Bihar reporting the highest cases.

 

Recent cases include the beating and killing of a Dalit man in Gujarat’s Ghuma village (February 2025), the murder of an 18-year-old Dalit man over an inter-caste relationship in Karnataka’s Bidar district (January 2025), and the brutal assault of a Dalit youth tied upside down from a tree in Rajasthan’s Barmer district (January 2025).

 

The latest incident in Gujarat underscores ongoing caste-based discrimination and violence despite existing legal protections. Authorities have assured a thorough investigation, while activists demand stricter enforcement of anti-caste violence laws.

 

Understanding Dalit Marginalization

Historically, Dalits, who are ranked in the lowest strata of the caste system of India, have been marginalized and, have long faced systemic discrimination and social exclusion. Once labelled as “untouchables,” they were denied access to education, temples, and fundamental rights. Although India has implemented constitutional protections and affirmative action policies, caste-based violence remains prevalent especially in the rural areas, highlighting the urgent need for stronger legal and social reforms.