Unnao: 17-yr old vegetable vendor thrashed to death by UP cops; Owaisi slams Yogi govt

In a tragic incident,17-year-old Faisal died on Friday after he was allegedly beaten up by a police constable in Uttar Pradesh's Unnao district, for 'violating COVID curfew'. The incident took place in Bhatpuri locality in Bangarmau area when the boy was selling vegetables outside his house. A constable has now been suspended and a homeguard has been sacked, as per PTI.

Unnao: 17-yr old vegetable vendor thrashed to death 

His family alleged that the boy was caught by a constable for allegedly violating 'corona curfew' and thrashed with a stick. He was later taken to a police station, where he was again thrashed following which his condition deteriorated and he was rushed to the Community Health Centre, where he was declared dead, the family alleged. The police have filed an FIR against the policemen stating that the entire matter will be probed. The autopsy report has revealed that the victim died due to a head injury.

Owaisi slams Yogi

Lamenting the death of yet another Muslim youth in UP, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi stated that there was ' no respite from violence for Muslims even in a raging pandemic'. Claiming that majority of self-employed & people with informal sector jobs (such as Faisal), are Muslim, SC & ST, he said that lockdowns have snatched their livelihoods & brought violence on them. Moreover, Owaisi stated that 56% of UP cops had a bias against Muslims and that 54% of UP cops prefer police punishment over legal trials.

Previously too Owaisi has slammed the BJP government for lynching-related deaths. In September 2019,  he had cited the Tabrez Ansari case condemning the Jharkhand police's inaction in the case. Slamming religious intolerance, he had said that the accused were being protected by the Centre.

"The thing is that had Tabrez Ansari been rescued when he was beaten for 7 hours, his life would have been saved, had he taken to the hospital immediately, his life would have been saved. From day 1 that the Police allowed Ansari to be dead for the whole night. He was forced to chant all the slogans against the basic tenets of Islam. This is a pattern of BJP govt that accused are being protected, the criminal cases of mob-lynching are diluted," said Owaisi.

Owaisi also slammed RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat for taking issue with the term 'lynching' rather than the acts itself. Reminding Bhagwat that the victims of lynching were Indians, he questioned who had garlanded the convicts and draped them in the triclour. He clarified that Bhagwat had not directed to stop lynching, but had said 'don't call it that'. RSS chief had stated that 'lynchings' should not be used to defame the country, asserting that 'lynching' is a foreign concept.

(With PTI inputs)