A Dalit youth was allegedly attacked because he was having food while sitting on a chair at a restaurant in Awagarh in Uttar Pradesh’s Etah district on Sunday.

Victim Pankaj Sagar of Suraya village in Firozabad has said in his complaint with Awagarh police that Yogesh Yadav and his four friends from Nawali village in Etah came to the restaurant on two motorcycles and asked him to leave the table.

“They asked my caste and started shouting at me. Then they forced me to sit on the floor. As I tried to resist them, Yogesh pulled out a revolver and hit me several times with its butt.

“They hurled abuses at me and told me not to dare sit at a dining table of a restaurant in the area,” Pankaj told the police and reporters.

Pankaj said he knew the attackers by their faces but had never interacted with them.

Etah and Firozabad are adjoining districts and the villages of the victim and the attackers are located around 10km apart.

“Some people, who were present in the restaurant, saved me from the beatings and helped me reach the police station,” said Pankaj.

Phool Chand, in charge of Awagarh police station, said: “It appears that they had some differences for the past few months and started fighting when they ran into each other in the restaurant.”

“We have registered a case and are conducting an inquiry. The accused persons would be arrested if the charges are found true,” the officer said.

“We took the victim to a hospital for medical examination and found certain injuries on his face, shoulder and back,” he added.