RAIPUR: A forest guard attached to the Devnagar beat of Surajpur forest division was allegedly manhandled and forced to dance by a group of local youths. The incident, which came to light after video clips surfaced on social media, has raised concerns over rising vigilantism in the region. The footage shows the group forcing the guard to play music and dance before assaulting him with sticks and belts. The attackers reportedly targeted the guard because he was accompanied by a woman friend.Surajpur Divisional Forest Officer (DFO) D P Sahu said the incident occurred about a week ago. “I have issued a show-cause notice to the forest guard and sought his reply to initiate a police case. The guard has expressed reluctance to take legal action and claimed the incident stemmed from an old rivalry,” Sahu said. The department is awaiting a formal response from the guard before proceeding with further legal steps.
