In a shocking incident, a Dalit man in Uttar Pradesh's Kasganj district committed suicide after allegedly being mistreated by policemen.

According to media reports, the 48-year-old man, Ramesh Chand, was deeply disturbed after he was allegedly kicked, punched, and humiliated by some policemen for sitting on a chair during a Ramlila event. Chand took his own life by hanging himself at his home in Salempur Vivi village, under the Soron police station, on Sunday night.

According to a Hate Detector report, Chand's family members and people from the Dalit community staged a protest on Monday, demanding action against the accused. A large police force has been deployed to manage the rising tension. Police officials have sent Chand's body for post-mortem, and senior authorities have ordered an investigation.

Chand’s wife, Ram Rati, filed a complaint with the police, claiming that her husband had gone to watch the Ramlila at 9 p.m. on Sunday and had sat on an empty chair. The organizers reportedly objected to a Dalit sitting on a chair and called constables Bahadur and Vikram Chaudhary to "remove" Chand.

In her complaint, Ram Rati alleged that the police, acting on the organizers' instructions, brutally assaulted Chand and used casteist slurs. "They pulled the gamchha (veil) around his neck, threw him to the ground, and kicked and punched him," she said.

Shocked by the mistreatment, Chand questioned the crowd about what he had done wrong, but received no answer. He then ran home, told his wife about the incident, and retreated to his room. On Monday morning, Ram Rati found her husband hanging from a noose. Chand, a farmer, leaves behind his wife and four minor children, including two daughters.

Additional SP Rajesh Bharti offered a different version of events, stating, "The man had climbed onto the Ramlila stage in an intoxicated state and sat there. The organizers and audience objected, and with the help of the police, he was removed from the stage. He returned home safely. On Monday morning at 6 a.m., he was found hanging in his home. The matter is under investigation."

This incident is not an isolated case of discrimination against Dalits. Reports of similar mistreatment are frequent across India.

Just a week ago, in Sonbhadra, Uttar Pradesh, a Dalit youth was beaten by assailants who urinated on him. A video of the incident went viral on social media. The victim reported the matter to the local police, who arrested the main accused, Ankit Bharti, and filed charges against seven or eight youths involved in the attack.

Another shameful incident occurred in Lucknow in August this year. After dining at a restaurant, some men asked a waiter about his caste. Upon learning he was Dalit, they refused to pay the bill and assaulted both the waiter and the manager. The entire incident was captured on CCTV. Following a complaint, the Gomti Nagar police registered a case against seven individuals.

Earlier this year, in January, cases of Dalit harassment surfaced in the Hathras and Saharanpur districts of Uttar Pradesh.

In Hathras, after a minor altercation in Susayat Kala village, a fight broke out between the Thakur and Jatav (Dalit) communities. The Jatav family alleged police inaction and put up "house for sale" posters outside their home in protest, which caused a stir when images went viral. The police later arrested the accused. Meanwhile, in Saharanpur, a Dalit student was beaten while returning from school. His family filed a written complaint with the police.