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KOZHIKODE: A 43-year-old father and his two daughters became the latest victims of moral policing after a group allegedly assaulted them and demanded proof of his relationship with his daughters while they were waiting for a bus at Kalpetta town in Wayanad. Suresh Babu of Parayil House at Ambukuthi near Muttil was allegedly assaulted by seven auto drivers when he was waiting for the bus to Bengaluru with his two daughters - aged 18 and 13 respectively - on the night of February 28.

The police complaint said that the assaulters manhandled Babu and showered abuses after asking what he was doing with the young girls at night. They pushed him and he fell on his children. Babu and his daughters were on a trip to Bengaluru to watch a football match on March 1.

Kalpetta police have registered cases against seven persons . Police said they are yet to identify the accused and would be holding an identification parade on Monday.

"We three were sitting at the bus stop at Kalpetta around 9.30pm. A group of auto drivers - who were standing on the other side of the road - approached us, pointed at my daughters and asked who they were. When my daughters said I was their father they said I didn't look like their father and sought proof," Babu said.

The women's commission has sought a report from the Wayanad district police chief on the steps taken in connection with the incident.

Chairperson MC Josephine said the commission would suo moto register a case.

"They asked me why I had put my hand over my younger daughter's shoulder and started showering expletives saying they were watching us for quite some time. They pulled at my clothes, pushed me and I fell on the girls. Soon, the bus arrived and somehow, I managed to board the bus with my daughters," he said.

While Babu's elder daughter is a first-year degree student, the younger one is studying in Class VII. "My daughters were shattered and in tears. I was taken aback as the incident took place in the town where I had been working for the past two decades. I am planning to take my younger daughter to a counsellor as she is yet to recover from the shock," he added.

Babu said that he had contacted the Nirbhaya helpline and intimated them about the incident before starting off to Bengaluru. Babu filed a formal complaint with Kalpetta police on Saturday after he returned.

