Police in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh have arrested a man for urinating on a tribal worker in public.
Pravesh Shukla has been charged under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, a law meant to protect historically oppressed communities.
He was arrested after a video showing him urinating on the man was widely shared on social media.
The incident has sparked outrage across the country.
Mr. Shukla has not commented on the incident.
Some politicians of the main opposition party Congress have alleged that he is associated with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is also in power in Madhya Pradesh. The BJP has denied the allegation.
The police also refused to comment on the allegation, saying that the “facts of the case need to be first investigated”.
Despite laws meant to protect tribes people, discrimination against them and other people belonging to India’s lower castes, thought to number around 200 million, remains a daily reality.
They are some of the country’s most downtrodden citizens because of an unforgiving Hindu caste hierarchy that condemns them to the bottom of the ladder.
In the video, which was first circulated on Tuesday, Mr. Shukla can be seen smoking a cigarette while urinating on the face of the man who is sitting by the side of the road. Reports say that Mr. Shukla was drunk at the time.
As the clip went viral, several people demanded his arrest.
“This incident has put the entire state of Madhya Pradesh to shame. Strictest punishment should be given to the guilty person, and atrocities against tribal [people] in Madhya Pradesh should be stopped,” Kamal Nath, a former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, tweeted on Tuesday.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan also expressed his outrage and said the administration would impose the stringent National Security Act (NSA) against him.
Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson Abbas Hafeez alleged that the accused, Pravesh Shukla, has ties with BJP lawmaker Kedarnath Shukla. Mr. Hafeez also shared photos that show the two of them together.
While Pravesh Shukla is yet to make a statement, his father Ramakant has alleged that his son is being targeted by the opposition because “he is the representative of the BJP legislator”.
“I hope there is a thorough investigation in the case and justice is served,” local media quoted him as saying.
Lawmaker Kedarnath Shukla, however, denied the allegations and said that he had no idea who the accused was.
“When I go out in the constituency, there are many people who come with me. I attend so many programmes. He is not a BJP member,” he said.
