Gurugram: Youth thrashed by 4 men, forced to remove skull cap

A 25-year-old Muslim man was allegedly thrashed by unidentified men in Gurugram’s Sadar area, for wearing a traditional skull cap, police said on Sunday. The victim who claimed of being assaulted is identified as Mohamad Barker Alam.

The victim hails from Bihar and is living in Gurugram’s Jakob Pura area. According to Alam, he was attacked in the evening while he was on his way home after offering namaz at a mosque. This incident comes a day after Muslim youths, woman were thrashed by a group of people over arrying beef in Madhya Pradesh's Seoni.

In a complaint to the police, Alam alleged that gang of four-five people beat him up and forced him to remove skull cap. He claimed they forced him to chant “Jai Shri Ram". He said when he refused, he was manhandled.

"The accused threatened me, saying wearing cap was not allowed in the area. They removed my cap and slapped me while asking me to chant Bharat Mata ki Jai," Alam said in the FIR, lodged at the city police station.

"As I followed their instruction and chanted Bharat Mata ki Jai, they asked me to chant Jai Shri Ram, which I refused. At this, the youths picked up a baton from the roadside and began mercilessly beating me. They hit me on my legs and back," he added.

The victim also said that when he cried for help, people from his community rushed to help him, following which the assailants fled the spot. "We have received a complaint about the incident and registered an FIR under sections 153, 147, 149, 323 and 506 in the city police station. We have also conducted a medical examination of the victim," said Gurgaon City ACP Rajiv Kumar.

"We are also scanning the CCTV footage of the area to identify the accused. Efforts are on to nab them," ACP added.