9-Year-Old Boy Slapped, Humiliated In Delhi Market, 3 Arrested: Cops

A nine-year-old boy was allegedly slapped, humiliated and verbally abused in public by a garment stall owner and his two employees in southwest Delhi's Sarojini Nagar market, police said on Tuesday.

Two purported videos of the shocking meted out to the boy, who is a Nepalese, surfaced on social media, following which Delhi Police apprehended the three men for the incident, they said.

In one of the disturbing videos that has gone viral on social media, a man is seen holding the boy with his unclasped belt to restrict his movement as the child cries for help. Another man steps forward and sprays what appears to be liquid soap or shampoo directly onto the child's hair and head.

The same man then forcibly rubs the soap into the child's hair while mocking him. Loud verbal abuse and curses are heard throughout the video, with the child pleading to stop the assault.

At one point, a third man intervenes and pokes the child with his foot, further humiliating him. The boy winces and tries to turn away, but is restrained by the man.

In another video, a man is seen trying to shove the child inside a tempo while he is seen resisting.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southwest) Amit Goel said, "One of them is seen holding the boy by his hands and belt, while another pours water into his pants." Another man can be seen poking the boy with his foot and hurling verbal abuses, Goel said.

The victim is a class three student and a native of Nepal. His mother works as a cook in the Sarojini Nagar Market area, he added.

The purported video shows the child being slapped, abused, threatened and humiliated by three men, the DCP said.

Taking cognisance of the video, police registered a case under sections 115(2) (Voluntarily causing hurt), 127(2) (Wrongful confinement), 351 (Criminal intimidation) of the BNS, Sections 75 of the Juvenile Justice Act (Punishment for cruelty to child) and Section 12 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act (Punishment for sexual harassment of a child).

Pankaj (35), who owns a readymade garments stall at Sarojini Nagar Market, and Pradeep Kumar (29) and Vishal (30), both working as helpers at Pankaj's shop, were apprehended, police said.

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