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Mangaluru: A few days ago, a video of three boys – all between 13 and 15 – tied to a pole and brutally beaten by a group of men went viral on social media. This video was shot on July 10 in Kharola village, Renapur Taluka in Maharashtra’s Latur district, on the phone of one of the attackers. The attackers were all Maratha men from the same village and the victims were school- going Muslim boys.

Despite how clear cut the case appeared in the video and despite police having to intervene before the attackers finally released the boys, the officials filed a case against the victims instead. Only after public pressure mounted was an FIR registered against the Maratha men, hours later.

The father of one of the boys, who is also a witness in the case, told The Wire that he rushed to the scene along with the parents of the other two children as soon as he learned his son and his friends were tied up and being beaten.

“We tried hard to stop the men, but they turned on us and started abusing us. We were so scared they would kill our children, and we couldn’t do anything. After pleading with them, we rushed to the police station, seven kilometres away. The police arrived at the spot immediately,” he........

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