Mangaluru, 26 Feb

The police have arrested two men for assaulting, filming and making casteist remarks against a minor boy and a girl without their permission in Mangaluru in Karnataka.

The incident occurred in the Attavar Babugudde area on the outskirts of the City, when a minor boy and girl had been seated near the railway tracks. The accused, identified asSteven Montero and his son Avil, reportedly approached them and began making their videos in their mobile phones.

Police officials said that father-son duo verbally abused the children using obscene and casteist remarks and also assaulted the boy. They are also accused of recording the incident and attempting to circulate the video on social media to cause distress and harm the reputation of the children.

Taking note of the video that surfaced online and based on the complaints by the minors, a case was registered against the accused at the Mangaluru South Police Station.

The accused have been booked under provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Both the father and his son have been taken into custody.

The police have warned that acts of moral policing and caste-based abuse constitute serious criminal offences and will be dealt with strictly.