Bengaluru, June 25 A mob allegedly assaulted two men from the minority community in Karnataka's Bengaluru district and forced them to chant "Jai Shri Ram" slogans, police said on Wednesday.
The incident has been reported from the Sampigehalli police station limits in Bengaluru.
The police have registered an FIR based on a complaint filed by Mohammad Zameer Pasha, a resident of Basavalingappa Nagar in Bengaluru.
The FIR has been booked under Sections 126(2) (wrongful restraint), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 118(1) (grievous hurt by dangerous means), 299 (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings), 352 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), and 351(2) read with subsections (3) and (5) (criminal intimidation).
According to the FIR, the incident occurred on Tuesday when the complainant Zameer, a mechanic, along with his friend Waseem Ahmad, was travelling in an auto-rickshaw on Sampigehalli Main Road toward Chokkanahalli to collect a vehicle from a customer for repairing.
They had stopped near a eucalyptus grove.
Around seven to eight men, who were standing nearby and talking among themselves, confronted the victim duo.
They allegedly questioned the duo about why they had come to the area and where they were going.
In response, Waseem reportedly asked them to mind their own business and questioned their interference.
Following this, the gang began abusing and assaulting both Zameer and Waseem.
Zameer managed to flee, but witnessed Waseem being beaten with sticks.
During the assault, Waseem reportedly screamed in pain and invoked the name of Allah, according to the FIR.
The attackers allegedly demanded that Waseem chant "Jai Shri Ram" instead and continued to beat him, the FIR said.
The victims were treated at the Yelahanka General Hospital.
Waseem has reportedly suffered reduced hearing in his right ear following the assault.
When asked about the incident, Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara in Bengaluru said on Wednesday that the police would take appropriate legal action.
"The police will act in accordance with the law. I will not issue separate orders in this case. The government does not respond to individual incidents with special directives. It is a policy-making body. The concerned officers will proceed as per the IPC and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Act," Parameshwara added.
The police have launched a hunt for the unknown accused persons.
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