Indian authorities on Wednesday demolished the home of a man accused of publicly urinating on a member of a tribal community after footage of the alleged assault sparked public condemnation. A video shared widely on social media appeared to show Pravesh Shukla urinating on his young victim in a dark street in the central Sidhi district while smoking a cigarette. The attack took place last year but came to public attention only this week. Local police said Shukla had been arrested and charged in connection with the assault. He could be fined and jailed for a year. Authorities also demolished his home, in Madhya Pradesh state, after it was “found to be illegally constructed”, a police officer, Ravinder Verma, told AFP. Local media showed a bulldozer taking apart the roof. India counts more than 100 million people in its diverse Indigenous tribal communities, collectively known as Adivasis. Along with those at the bottom of the caste hierarchy, Adivasis have been subjected to violence, prejudice and discrimination for centuries. In recent years, India has recorded numerous instances of authorities punishing suspected criminals by demolishing their homes. Rights groups have condemned “bulldozer justice” as an unlawful punishment by India’s Hindu nationalist government, which is accused of disproportionately targeting the Muslim minority.
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