In an incident of mob justice in Ganjam district, a youth was assaulted mercilessly and tonsured for allegedly stealing an idol from a temple at Chanameri village under Digapahandi block on Sunday.
The incident occurred in the morning when the villagers caught the youth red-handed trying to steal the idol of Goddess Parvati from Kapileswar temple.
He was caught and beaten black and blue by the locals after being tied to an electric pole.
Later, the accused was tonsured and paraded in the village.
On receiving information, the Digapahandi police reached the spot and rescued the youth from clutches of villagers. Later, he was admitted to the Digapahandi Community Health Centre (CHC) for treatment.
Some onlookers shot the entire incident on their smartphones and posted it on social media to make it viral.