New Delhi: Three Indian police officers were suspended Tuesday after footage emerged showing a constable attacking a female student they had accused of socialising with a Muslim man, officials said.
The cops were suspended after a disturbing video from Uttar Pradesh's Meerut, in which a Hindu woman was being thrashed by a police constable while another asks her - why choose a Muslim man over Hindus? goes viral.
The Hindu woman was assaulted in the police van, which had rescued her from a mob attack.
The woman constable started beating the Hindu student and removed her scarf she used to cover her face after the policeman taunted, “"You prefer Muslims when there are so many Hindus around."
The beating goes on and on throughout the way to police station.
According to India media, the incident took place on Sunday, when the woman and her Muslim friend, both medical students in their twenties, were targeted by a group Hindu extremists, who barged into the man's home, manhandled the pair and handed them over to the police.
Meanwhile, AFP added that Police in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, where the incident occurred, said that the female constable and two other police officials had been suspended pending an inquiry.
"Their conduct has led to embarrassment for the UP police," a senior police official who did not want to be named, told AFP.
India´s police are often criticised for their attitudes towards women, particularly when women come forward to report crimes committed against them.