Palakkad: A 17-year-old boy was tied to a tree and brutally beaten by three members of a family for allegedly stealing around a couple of hundred rupees and mango from their shop near Kozhinjampara in the district.
According to an officer at Kozhinjampara police station, the incident occurred on May 21, but the complaint was lodged by the victim belonging to the scheduled caste on Thursday as he was hospitalised after the brutal beating.
"A case under relevant sections of the IPC and SC/ST Act would be registered against the three accused -- a couple and their minor son. The couple is in our custody. Their son was sent home as he is a juvenile. They will be formally arrested on Friday and produced before a court," the officer told PTI.
The officer said while the accused alleged that the boy stole thousands of rupees in cash and other materials from their shop, they have not made a complaint to that effect.
"They (accused) tied up and beat the boy to their heart's content and no one there intervened to stop them or call the police as everyone was scared of them. They were very influential. Some people took videos of the incident," he said.
Video footage of the boy being beaten were shown on TV channels. Police said the boy was beaten all over from head to toe and suffered serious injuries. "Fortunately he is alive," the officer said.
There have been other similar incidents reported from Kerala in the past few years.
Madhu, a tribal, was tied up and beaten to death by a mob back in 2018 in Attappady area of Palakkad for allegedly stealing food.
Recently, on May 13, a group in Malappuram had beaten to death a 36-year-old man hailing from Bihar suspecting him of indulging in thieving.
Back then police had said Rajesh Manji was lynched by local residents who caught him after he fell from the sunshade of a house near Kondotty in Malappuram district.
(wtih PTI inputs)
