Police have registered a case against a sarpanch and another person for allegedly assaulting and humiliating a physically challenged farmer during a dispute in Maharashtra's Latur district, officials said on Wednesday.
According to the 39-year-old farmer, the incident occurred on June 19 in Khadgaon village.
The farmer, who claimed to be suffering from 85 per cent physical disability, had approached the tehsildar (revenue officer) seeking the removal of alleged encroachments on a government road -- Khadgaon-Harangul Pandan Road -- shown in the village map.
When revenue officials visited the site for an inspection, the farmer pointed out the survey numbers and requested that the road be opened as per official records. At that time, the sarpanch (village head) and another villager allegedly abused him, made derogatory remarks about his disability, assaulted him and issued death threats, as per the FIR.
The farmer further alleged that the accused warned him against pursuing complaints and threatened him with serious consequences. He later sought medical treatment and subsequently approached the police.
Based on his complaint, the MIDC Police registered an FIR on Tuesday against the sarpanch and another villager under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections for assault, intentional insult and criminal intimidation and provisions of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, officials said.
Meanwhile, the farmer approached the Latur tehsildar on Tuesday, seeking immediate removal of alleged encroachments on the road, claiming that despite repeated representations over the last nine years, authorities failed to fully restore the road as per official maps.
The farmer told PTI that he had first raised the issue before the district and revenue authorities in September 2017. Following inspections and a panchanama conducted by revenue officials, a portion of the road was cleared. However, he alleged that the remaining encroachments were never removed, leaving the road inaccessible as per the original map.
He also claimed that some individuals attempted to alter the alignment of the road by diverting it through private agricultural land rather than reopening the original route.
