7-yr-old boy stripped, tortured for stealing bicycle

Kolkata: A seven-year-old boy was allegedly stripped and severely beaten up by people for stealing a bicycle in Behrampore in West Bengal Saturday.

The boy, Kailash Raut, was tied to a tree and tortured for more than 40 minutes until the police rushed to the spot and rescued him, said Dilip Bandopadhyay, inspector in-charge of Behrampore, headquarters of Murshidabad district.

The incident occurred just metres away from the district magistrate's bungalow in Behrampore, over 200 km from Kolkata.

Bandopadhyay, however, said that the boy had not been stripped, though his clothes were torn.

"I found the boy fully clothed. However, his clothes were torn and he had received some deep gashes on his hands and legs," he said.

Additional superintendent of police Debashish Beij has ordered Bandopadhayay to initiate a suo motu inquiry into the incident.

Kailash has been sent for medical tests.