Sikh Student’s kes forcibly cut - Jaipur, India

August 22nd, 2006 by admin

There is tension in Jaipur after a 17-year-old Sikh boy’s hair was chopped off by a group of six youngsters after he tried to protect one of his classmates from eve teasing.

The incident sparked off angry protests from the Sikh community, which led to tension in some parts of the city.

The victim, Inderpreet’s family alleges that the police did not help them even though their son was being harassed by the miscreants for several weeks.

The police have formed special teams to catch the culprits but so far nobody has been arrested.

Heavy price

The 12th standard student was returning from school when six youngsters forced him into a car, took him to a lonely spot, thrashed him and cut his hair.

“They were angry as I used to oppose their eve-teasing. They caught me from outside the school, forced me into a Maruti car, and after beating me badly they cut my hair. They said they wanted to teach me a lesson,” said Inderpreet.

“They have ruined my son’s identity as a Sikh. It is better for us to die rather than to have our hair chopped. And in all our tragedy, the police did nothing to help us,” said Nirmal Kaur, victim’s mother.

Police inaction

Inderpreet and his family claim that the same hooligans had beaten him on July 24. But the police did not lodge an FIR on his complaint. Even after his hair was cut, the police took no action for several hours and the delay enabled the escape of the culprits.

The police however, have now promised tough action.

“We are holding a special enquiry into whether there was any delay or laxity in handling this case. If anyone is found guilty, we will take tough action. We are also working hard to nab the culprits and I feel we will be able to arrest them in a short time,” said Vishal Bansal, SP, Jaipur Police.

Protestors forced shops and markets to close down in some areas and the Sikh community says it will continue its agitation till the guilty are arrested.

This shameful tragedy has outraged everyone, especially the Sikh community. And until tough action is taken against the guilty, the protests in the city are bound to simmer.

Sources: NDTV, SSNews

Sikh student’s mother crying
Student’s father Jarnail Singh
Sikh student describing what happened
Sikhs protesting in Jaipur
Protests in Jaipur

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