Three persons were arrested in Madhya Pradesh's Pandhurna district after a video of them hanging a minor boy upside down and placing hot coal near his head surfaced on social media, police said on Monday.

The incident occurred on Sunday in Mohgaon, around 30 km from the district headquarters, they said.

The viral video shows a boy hanging upside down with hands tied with a rope and crying loudly, and later, a tray of hot coal is placed near his head. A man is also seen tying another boy in the video.

In the video, people are heard accusing the boy of stealing a watch and other items.

Pandhurna's Superintendent of Police (SP) Sundar Singh Kanesh said the police arrested three persons allegedly involved in the incident and booked them under sections 137(2) (kidnapping), 127(2) (wrongful confinement), 115 (causing hurt), 296 (obscene act) and other relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS).

Meanwhile, former chief minister Kamal Nath condemned the incident.

In a post on X, Nath wrote, "A video has surfaced of a small child being hung upside down and beaten and then two children being forced to inhale chilli smoke. This incident is highly condemnable. There is no place for such acts in a civilized society. I demand the local administration to take strict action against all the culprits in this case." The Congress leader said he is requesting the people of Pandhurna and the entire Madhya Pradesh that losing patience in such small matters and punishing children so brutally is dangerous.

"If a crime is committed, action should be taken according to the law and not by taking the law in one's hands and behaving brutally with children. Such incidents of torturing children bring down our region's respect in the society," he tweeted.

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