Muslim driver accuses Indian police of beating him over faith
Viral video from Uttar Pradesh shows auto-rickshaw driver alleging religious abuse, assault and bribery by traffic officers, prompting calls for investigation
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — A Muslim auto-rickshaw driver in northern India has accused traffic police officers of beating him, demanding a bribe and targeting him because of his religion, after a video of the confrontation circulated widely on social media and sparked calls for an independent investigation.
The driver, Mohammad Danish, alleges the incident occurred in the city of Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, where rights groups and opposition politicians have repeatedly raised concerns over discriminatory policing and treatment of Muslims. Local media reported the allegations on Sunday.
In a video apparently recorded by Danish during the confrontation, he accuses officers of assaulting him with batons because he is Muslim.
“They are beating me for being Muslim,” he says in the video. “They are saying, ‘He’s Muslim, beat him.'”
The footage shows Danish arguing with uniformed traffic police officers while another officer records him on a mobile phone. At one point, an officer says the driver does not have a license.
Danish responds that even if his documents were missing, it would not justify physical assault, adding that he possessed a valid license and could produce it.
Danish also alleges officers threatened to implicate him in false criminal cases and send him to jail after seizing his auto-rickshaw. He maintains he had stopped only to repair his vehicle when police approached him.
According to Danish, officers also used the word “katua,” a derogatory slur directed at Muslims in India, during the confrontation. He further accused a traffic police officer identified as Anupam Singh of demanding a bribe of 10,000 rupees (about $115) and threatening him after he objected to the seizure of his vehicle.
The allegations have prompted widespread reactions on social media, where users have called for an impartial investigation and disciplinary action against the officers if the claims are substantiated.
The traffic police had not issued an official statement responding to the allegations at the time of publication.
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