Recently, a video is going viral on social media platforms in which a man can be seen tied to a tree, and allegedly, is being forced to drink urine. The video is being widely circulated with the claim that it shows a Dalit man being assaulted in Rajasthan.

The video was shared on a Twitter page named 'The Dalit voice' with a caption, "Dalit oppression is at a peak in Rajasthan. Some dominate caste mob torturing a dalit, man tied with rope and forcing to drink urine publically. #DalitLivesMatter."

At the time of writing this article, the video has been shared over 3500 times. 

A user named Sankul also shared the video saying, "A Dalit man in Rajasthan was tied to a tree and forced to drink urine by UC men, who can be seen carrying a whip in the background. They also tonsured his head to further humiliate him. This is beyond pathetic."

Kush, a social activist as per his Twitter bio shared the video claiming that Dalit oppression is at a peak in Rajasthan.

This tweet has also been shared over 2000 times. 

The same video is going viral on Facebook as well with a similar claim. 

A user named Alauddin Khilji shared the viral video with a caption, "A Chamar Dalit man in Rajasthan was tied to a tree, and forced to drink urine of UC Upper Caste Hindu men, who can be seen carrying a cane lash whip, in the background. They also tonsured/ shaved off, his head to further humiliate him. This is beyond pathetic."

The truth behind the claim 

In our investigation, we found this claim to be false. The incident seen in the video took place on July 25 in Barmer, Rajasthan where a resident of Ratanpura village was thrashed and tonsured over a suspected 'illicit affair'. The victim and accused belonged to the same community and hence there is no 'caste angle'. The police is yet to verify whether the man was forced to drink urine or not. 

On July 29, ANI quoted the Superintendent of Police (SP) Barmer, Anand Sharma saying, "We took cognizance of the video. Upon primary investigation it was revealed that the matter is related to Chohtan police station and both the victim and the perpetrators were from the same family. The two parties had reached a compromise later on and, therefore, had not lodged a complaint with the police." 

He further added, "We have sent the SHO to the spot. A case will be registered and action will be taken against the culprits. Primary investigations have revealed that the matter is related to an affair with a woman. But we have received no such complaint yet." 

According to a July 31 report by Hindustan Times, Police have lodged a complaint taking note of the video which went viral on July 28, against the unnamed accused.

Reportedly, the case is being investigated by Chauhatan dy SP Ajit Singh. The youth, who was suspected to be having an affair was tied to a tree, his hair was cut, and was made to drink urine after being thrashed. Later, both parties reportedly reached an ‘agreement’ and decided to not take the matter to the police. However, cops sprung into action after the video went viral.

Barmer Police took to Twitter and refuted the claim that the victim belonged to the Dalit community. Barmer police responded to a Tweet and clarified, "It has shown in this video that a dalit man was tortured by a dominent caste but in real the matter belongs to a family dispute. Police has registered a suo-moto FIR followed by making arrest of 6 involved accused person."

Therefore, the claim shared with the viral video is false. The man seen in the video was assaulted over an 'illicit affair.' The victim and accused, both belong to the same community and is no caste angle to the incident.