Woman dragged out of home, thrashed over loan; 7 arrested

A woman was allegedly dragged out of her home, lashed with a belt, punched and kicked by a group of men, including the brother of a Congress leader, in Punjab's Muktsar district over a loan, police said Saturday.

The attack on Friday sparked outrage after a video of the assault over an alleged unpaid loan of Rs 23,000 surfaced on social media, with the Opposition criticising the "deteriorating" law and order in the state.

Out of the 10 accused in the case, seven persons, including Congress Councillor of Muktsar municipal council Rakesh Chaudhary and his brother have been arrested.

"We have arrested the seventh accused Rakesh Chaudhary (Congress Councillor) this evening," Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Manjit Singh Dhesi said Saturday.

Rakesh, who was not part of the group of men who thrashed the woman, was charged with criminal conspiracy along with other relevant sections of IPC.

In the video, the 35-year-old was seen being assaulted in the middle of a road as her son kept watching helplessly, crying and saying, "My mother is being beaten up."