In a shocking incident, a man was allegedly brutally thrashed and stripped naked by two men for not chanting 'Jai Shri Ram'.
Police identified the victim as Asim Hussain (46), a native of Moradabad. The incident reportedly occurred on Friday evening, while Hussain was returning home from New Delhi by Padmavat Express.
According to the victim, the accused pulled his beard and forced him to chant a religious slogan. However, after police conducted a preliminary probe, they found that the allegation was false.
A video of Hussain allegedly being beaten with a belt surfaced on social media, and a police team arrived at the compartment. The police apprehended two people and they were identified as Satish Kumar and Suraj Kumar. The arrests were made on the basis of information gathered from other passengers.
Satish (23) from Rae Bareli and Suraj (25) from Pratapgarh are both labourers. "Since an FIR has not yet been lodged in the case, both were initially charged with breach of peace. They were brought before a magistrate and released on bail," said Circle Officer of Moradabad (Railway) Devi Dayal.
Superintendent of Police, Railway (Moradabad), Aparna Gupta said that an FIR was registered at the Government Railway Police station in Moradabad on Saturday, nearly 24 hours after the alleged incident, when Hussain approached them.
Hussain claims that the attackers pulled his beard and forced him to chant a religious slogan before another passenger assisted them in exiting the train when it came to a stop near Moradabad railway station. He also claimed that the suspects robbed him of Rs 2,200.
"During the preliminary investigation, it was discovered that Hussain's claims that assailants pulled his beard and forced him to chant a religious slogan were false," Gupta said.
"We have learnt that people inside the compartment had a heated argument with Hussain after a woman travelling in the same compartment accused him of molestation. A few passengers beat up Hussain," CO Dayal stated.
"When a police team assigned to the train passengers’ security arrived at the compartment, Hussain had alighted. The police team was also unable to locate the woman. Further investigation is underway," Dayal added.
Hussain underwent a medical examination, and the report stated that he suffered "no major injuries".
Dayal said that an FIR had been registered against unidentified persons under sections 298, 323, 392, 504 and 506 of the Indian Penal Code.