Meerut: Bhim Army members have said their leader Chandrashekhar Azad, who is lodged in the Saharanpur jail, was physically assaulted by other inmates two days ago. The Bhim Army had risen to prominence after a string of violent incidents rocked Saharanpur earlier this year in May. The clashes saw pitched battles over many days between Dalits and Thakurs in parts of UP.

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Kalyan Singh, national spokesperson of Bhim Army, said, “We have confirmed information that Azad had been physically assaulted by four men in his barracks in the prison. This is nothing but a result of caste hatred. We want proper inquiry into the matter.

The Dalit organisation’s members have even given a memorandum to the district magistrate demanding action and an unbiased investigation into their charges.

Jail authorities, however, denied the incident had happened. “This is nothing but a rumour spread by this organisation to attract media attention. Chandrashekhar Azad is safe and sound. He has given us in writing that he has no problem and is completely safe,” said senior superintendent of Saharanpur jail Veeresh Raj Sharma.

Azad was arrested from Dalhousie on June 8 by UP STF, exactly a month after he was booked for his alleged role in the police-Dalit clash on May 9 in Saharanpur.

The incident earned Azad and his organisation unprecedented publicity. Later he also held a massive demonstration in Delhi against atrocities on Dalits, boosting the organisation’s prospects as a large number of people joined it. The UP police recently began a crackdown on the Bhim Army's leaders, not only arresting Azad but many other top leaders of the new Dalit organisation.