Six Men Booked in Jalna for Assaulting Dalit Driver Over Cattle Transport
Police in Jalna have booked six suspected Bajrang Dal members for allegedly assaulting a Dalit truck driver, hurling casteist slurs, and forcing cattle dung into his mouth in the Kanhaiyanagar area of the city.
The incident took place on May 23, 2026, but the complainant approached the police on Thursday, August 27, 2026, after a video recording of the assault circulated widely on social media.
A case has been registered at Taluka police station under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Sections 126(2) for wrongful restraint, 115(2) for voluntarily causing physical hurt, and 189(2) for unlawful assembly, alongside provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Police Inspector Santosh Sable identified the six accused as Venkatesh Bhagat, Arjun Singh, Shivraj Picchade, Somesh Patil, Yash Sarkate, and Ritesh Deshmukh.
According to the complaint filed by truck driver Parameshwar Suhas Hiwale, he was returning to Jalna with his 11-year-old son and an acquaintance, Narayan Maroti Kamble. Kamble had hired Hiwale's vehicle to transport a bull legally purchased at the weekly cattle market in Deulgaon Raja town.
A group claiming to be cow protectors followed the enclosed pick-up truck on motorbikes and intercepted it in Kanhaiyanagar. Hiwale said he presented purchase documents to show the animal was legally bought, but the men ignored the proof, grabbed his collar, and slapped him. Upon learning his name and caste, the accused allegedly hurled casteist abuses at him.
One of the accused then took cattle dung from the vehicle and forced it into Hiwale's mouth. The attackers also attempted to feed the dung to Hiwale's minor son before Hiwale intervened. The group filmed the assault on a mobile phone, assaulted Kamble, damaged the vehicle, and threatened to leave Hiwale and his son naked on the road. They also issued death threats if he approached the police, accusing him of intending to sell the bull to a butcher.
Jalna Deputy Superintendent of Police Anant Kulkarni said police had initially responded to the scene on May 23 and found Hiwale transporting three cows and two other cattle. Authorities seized the vehicle and registered a case under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960.
No arrests have been made in connection with the assault case so far, and the police investigation remains under way.
