Kerala: 2 held for assaulting school students at Palakkad in moral policing incident

Two persons have been arrested in connection with an incident of moral policing and assaulting a group of school children at a bus stop at Mannarkkad near here, police said on Saturday.Siddiq 50 and Hareesh 28 were arrested for allegedly beating up and abusing school students, including girls, who were waiting at a bus stop on Friday evening.We were a group of boys and girls waiting at the bus stop.

Two persons have been arrested in connection with an incident of moral policing and assaulting a group of school children at a bus stop at Mannarkkad near here, police said on Saturday.

Siddiq (50) and Hareesh (28) were arrested for allegedly beating up and abusing school students, including girls, who were waiting at a bus stop on Friday evening.

''We were a group of boys and girls waiting at the bus stop. Our principal-in-charge was also with us. Suddenly, one person came and abused a girl from our group. When we questioned them, other locals joined him and started beating us. This is not the first incident. The locals always make an issue when they see boys and girls together,'' a student told the media.

A senior police official told PTI that a case has been registered against the two arrested persons and five to six unidentified persons under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) including 341 (wrongful restraint), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 324 (Voluntarily causing hurt by dangerous weapons or means), and 294 B (using obscene words in or near any public place).

Protesting against the incident, the Students' Federation of India (SFI), the students' wing of the CPI(M), marched to the bus stop where they sat and demanded action against the culprits.

The mother of a boy, who was assaulted, told the media that the attackers after beating up the children forced them onto a bus and asked them to leave the place.

''I got a call from my child at around 5.30 in the evening saying a few people attacked them while they were waiting at the bus stop. When I asked, my son told me that he was having pain in his chest and body. Who gave them the authority to beat the children,'' she asked.

Students told the media that the locals always created an issue when boys and girls reached the bus stop together or stood together. Police said they have taken the statement of the students and were examining the CCTV visuals of the nearby shops to identify the rest of the culprits.