Visakhapatnam: A Dalit woman was allegedly beaten up and stripped by a group of people here over a land dispute, the police said.

The incident happened on December 18 at Jerripothulapalem area under Pendurthi police station limits in Visakhapatnam city but a complaint was filed today, they said. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Law and Order, South Zone) T Ravi Kumar Murthy said that the dispute was over a plot of land measuring 0.7 acres that was allotted to 22 beneficiaries of the state's NTR Housing Scheme.

However, the complainant and a few other families had been engaging in agricultural activities on the same plot of land claiming that it was allotted to them by the government over two decades ago, said police. The incident happened when some of the beneficiaries of the NTR Housing Scheme arrived at the plot on Monday to carry out ground-breaking work.

A clash ensued between the beneficiaries of the scheme and the complainant, leading to the woman being assaulted and stripped, the police said. Murthy said that a case has been registered against seven persons under relevant sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act as well as the Indian Penal Code. He said that the revenue department had been asked to look into their records to ensure that the dispute over the plot is solved.

The woman has been shifted to KG hospital in the city for treatment, he said.

PTI