Locals in MP village garland woman, her 'lover' with shoes, parade them

Katni (Madhya Pradesh) [India], May 16 : Madhya Pradesh Police initiated a probe after a purported video showed a 27-year-old man and a woman were seen garlanded with shoes and paraded by villagers in Sleemanabad of the State's Katni district, accusing the pair of having an affair, police said.

The incident took place under Sleemanabad police station limits in the district. A video of the incident has gone viral on social media in which the married woman and the man who is alleged to be her paramour were seen being paraded with a garland of shoes around their necks.

"On May 10 afternoon, information was received on Dial 100 from deputy sarpanch of Salarpur, Vishwanath Singh that a youth Rahul Kumar, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, came to Pipariya village and was seen in conversation with a married woman of the village and locals had caught him," Sleemanabad police station in-charge Vipin Singh said on Sunday.

Acting on the information, the police team reached the village where the sarpanch, deputy sarpanch, husband of the woman, family members of the woman, the youth and others were present. They already had participated in a panchayat meeting and told police that the woman Geeta Singh and Rahul wanted to live together and they wanted to send both of them together by performing all the formalities, he added.

"The police had asked the woman and the youth on the spot whether they were assaulted or not, but they said that nothing had happened. After which the villagers released the woman and the youth from the village. After that there was not any information in this regard but on May 13, we received a photograph and a video in which the youth and the woman were seen with garland of shoes," the police station in charge said.

He added that no complaints were received but on the basis of video and photographs which the police received, an investigation into the matter was going on and action would be taken against those who were found guilty.

Katni Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhijeet Kumar Ranjan said, "The incident has come to our notice via social media. The incident occurred under Sleemanabad police station limits in the district. In the preliminary investigation, it came to fore that the incident took place due to a quarrel between a woman, her lover and her husband. Local police were investigating the matter."

"We have not received any complaint in the matter yet but we are taking Suo Moto action in it. Those who will be found guilty, action will be taken against them," he added.