Chamarajanagar: A 22-year-old youth was taken into Police custody after he allegedly smeared cow dung on a poster of Dr. B.R. Ambedkar and damaged lights installed around it at Masanapura village in Yalandur taluk on Sunday. 

The accused Chandru, a resident of the village, was allegedly caught by villagers, who tied him to an electric pole, garlanded him with slippers and assaulted him before Police intervened. 

According to villagers, the incident occurred around 4 am yesterday when Chandru allegedly defaced the Ambedkar poster installed on the road connecting Masanapura and Chatipura villages and damaged the lights fixed near it. 

On learning of the incident, villagers reportedly caught Chandru and subjected him to public humiliation and assault.  

Superintendent of Police M. Muthuraju and officers of the Yalandur Police Station rushed to the spot, gathered information from residents and took the accused into custody. 

The incident triggered tension in the village, with residents blocking the Yalandur-Chamarajanagar Road and staging a protest. People from neighbouring villages also arrived in large numbers, prompting Police to step up security and crowd-control measures. 

The protesting villagers demanded stringent action against the accused and sought his banishment from the village. Several elected representatives visited Masanapura, condemned the alleged desecration of the Ambedkar poster and urged the authorities to take appropriate legal action.