Body-shaming drives Karnal village resident atop tower

Parveen Arora

Karnal, May 29

Facing repeated insults over scars on his face, a resident of Pabana Hasanpur village in the district climbed atop a mobile tower late last evening. He demanded financial assistance from the government for surgery of his face and hands, which bear marks of burn injuries he sustained years ago.

A welder by profession, 23-year-old Bharat, alias Kala, alleged people often passed insulting remarks on him due to his “ugly” face. “No one likes to look at me. I face discrimination wherever I go. I got these marks due to an accident,” he alleged.

A number of villagers gathered at the spot. Bharat refused to listen to their pleas and said he won’t come down till the authorities assure him of help. He finally climbed down 24 hours later after SHO Tarshem Singh and Naib Tehsildar Ram Kumar assured him help for his treatment. His brother Kuldeep said Bharat suffered burn injuries during childhood due to the bursting of a stove while making tea. “He was taken to hospital. While the injuries were treated, the family could not afford the surgery due to its high cost,” he said.