50 Dalit families boycotted for Pocso case on upper caste man

YADGIR : Fifty Dalit families in north Karnataka 's Yadgir district have been allegedly facing a social boycott for a month after a minor Dalit girl 's parents refused to withdraw charges of sexual assault against a 23-year-old upper caste man.

Police sources said the 15-year-old girl and the man were reportedly in a relationship and he allegedly sexually assaulted her on the pretext of marriage. The girl informed her parents in early Aug when she was five months pregnant. When the girl's family asked the man to honour his word, his family allegedly rejected it, following which the girl's parents filed a case under Pocso Act on Aug 12. Yadgir is about 500km from Bengaluru.

Following the complaint, upper caste members of the village called the girl's parents for negotiations. However, the parents decided to proceed with the case. On Aug 13, the accused was arrested and remanded in judicial custody.

Angered by this, village's upper caste leaders allegedly imposed a social boycott of about 250 Dalits residing in the village's two colonies denying them access to grocery and stationery shops, temples, salons and public spaces. A purported audio clip of the boycott call has gone viral on social media.

However, Yadgir SP Sangeetha denied any evidence of the alleged situation in the village where she's currently camping to broker peace. She urged village elders "to refrain from inhumane practices" such as boycott and ostracism. Vllagers have reportedly agreed to the SP's request.