Bhadohi, Mar 3 (PTI) A village head and his son were booked here for allegedly assaulting Dalit labourers and stopping them from laying a pipeline under the government's Jal Jeevan Mission scheme, police said on Monday.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhimanyu Manglik said that the incident occurred on February 28 in the Dalit settlement of Tulsi Chak village, where several laborers were digging earth to lay a pipeline.

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Village head Lalji Yadav and his son Pankaj Yadav allegedly confronted the workers, demanding to know who had authorised the work.

"When the labourers told them that the excavation was being carried out on an official order, the village head and his son insisted that the work be stopped. While some workers halted their activities, Ravish Kumar Gautam, Ajay Kumar, and Shiv Chand continued digging," Manglik said.

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Angered by this, the accused snatched the workers' tools and used them as weapons to assault the three, he said.

Following a complaint from Ravish Kumar Gautam, a case was registered on Sunday at the City Kotwali Police Station against Lalji Yadav and Pankaj Yadav under BNS along with provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, including Sections 3(1)(d) and 3(1)(g).

Circle Officer Ashok Mishra said the accused were not found at their residence, and efforts are underway to locate them.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)