Odisha teacher humiliated in public

Filing a police complaint against a rowdy man cost a teacher dearly. The man, said to be a relative of a village head, held a Kangaroo court and chastised the teacher in full public view for his “audacity”.

Reports said on Sunday that Sridhar Nayak, a primary school teacher working with Patachandi Prasad Project Primary School at Itamati in Nayagarh district, had an altercation with one Biranchi Kumar Pradhan from the neighbouring Bijipur village on October 17.

Following this, Sridhar filed a written complaint with Itamati police station. Jagannath Nayak, the husband of Baunsiapada sarpanch, and Jogendranath Swain allegedly took Sridhar from the police station to Balarampur village on the pretext of an amicable solution to the dispute.

The village secretary and head of the Kangaroo court, Baridhar Nayak, Mayadhar Nayak and others took Sridhar to the middle of the village and hurled abuses. Later, his limbs were tied and he was thrashed despite his repeated pleas. The torture didn’t stop there. He was forced to make rounds of the village, crawling on his knees.

A sobbing Sridhar allegedly asked the tormentors to free him but they were not over yet. He kept begging but all fell on deaf ears. They also made him pass between the legs of Mayadhar Nayak, while kneeling on the ground, on the instructions of Baridhar.

Some villagers shot the video and uploaded it on WhatsApp and Facebook. When Sridhar came to know about it, he tried to commit suicide. However, he was saved by his family which later filed a complaint with the local police.

A case was registered with the Itamati police and Mayadhar Pradhan and Sanjay Pradhan were arrested on Saturday. The other accused are still at large.

“We have arrested two persons and forwarded to court in connection with the case. The prime accused Baridhar Nayak is on the run and we will apprehend him soon,” inspector Saroj Kumar Sahoo of Itamati police station said on Sunday.

Photograph: Teacher Sridhar Nayak made to pass between the legs of Mayadhar Nayak while kneeling on the ground, on the instructions of main Baridhar Nayak.