UP: Dalit student forced to shave off moustache by 'upper caste' men
Noida, Jul 24: A Dalit youth was allegedly made to shave off his moustache by a group of "upper-caste" men in western Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district, with police saying an FIR has been lodged against the accused.
Police have also booked the barber who shaved off the moustache of the Dalit youth, Rajat Kumar, a college student in his early 20s, who was taken to his salon by the group of men belonging to the same village.
According to the complaint by the youth, the incident took place in the morning of July 18 in Shimlana village under the Bargaon police station limits when the six "upper-caste" men held him and hurled abuses at him.
The group, which was armed with weapons, then took him to a local salon where he was "forced" to get his moustache shaved by the barber while the whole episode was video-graphed and later shared on social media.
An FIR was lodged at the Bargaon police station on Thursday after a complaint by the youth under Indian Penal Code Sections 147, 148 (both related to rioting), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 504 (provoking breach of peace) and 506 (criminal intimidation).
Charges under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 have also been slapped against the seven accused, including the barber, police said.
"A video of the incident went viral on social media after which a complaint was made at the local police station in which the complainant said some men of his Shimlana village misbehaved with him and assaulted him," Superintendent of Police (Rural) Atul Sharma said.
"The FIR has been lodged under relevant provisions of the law. Police teams have been formed to trace the men involved in the episode and they would be arrested soon, Sharma added.
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Allahabad HC orders probe into 'reinstatement' of teacher in UP's Barabanki
Lucknow (PTI): The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Friday ordered a probe by the special task force (STF) into alleged irregularities in the rejoining of a teacher at City Intermediate College in Barabanki, observing that the reinstatement appeared to be prima facie illegal.
The court also directed the recovery of the salary paid to the teacher during the disputed period.
A bench of Justice Rajeev Singh passed the order on a petition filed by the college management committee. The court expressed doubts over the roles of the District Inspector of Schools (DIOS), Barabanki, the college principal and the teacher concerned and hence, directed a detailed inquiry into the matter.
Taking note of alleged manipulation of records and misleading submissions, the court ordered the immediate transfer of the Barabanki DIOS to ensure a fair probe. It also directed the initiation of disciplinary proceedings against the then joint director of education of the Ayodhya division.
In its order, the court found that the teacher, Abhay Kumar, was initially appointed as an assistant teacher in 2018 but joined an Eklavya Model Residential School in Chhattisgarh as a lecturer in June 2024 without obtaining permission from the management. His subsequent request to retain the lien was rejected.
Despite this, he was allowed to rejoin the Barabanki College in September 2025 on the directions of the joint director of education and the DIOS, and was even paid the salary for October 2025. The court termed the rejoining "wholly illegal" and lacking any legal basis.
The bench also expressed concern over lapses in communication within the education department and directed the Uttar Pradesh chief secretary to ensure that official orders are communicated through email and WhatsApp as well, to prevent disputes.
The matter is next listed for hearing on May 28 when a compliance report is sought.
