Two women, one of them carrying a baby in her arms, were on Tuesday beaten up in Dombivli for allegedly saying “excuse me” instead of speaking in Marathi. As a video of the incident went viral, police said they were conducting a preliminary probe into the matter. The incident took place in the morning when the women, who were on a two-wheeler, were entering the premises of the housing society they lived in.

When the woman who was riding the scooter said “excuse me” to a young man who was obstructing the entrance, he allegedly took offence, demanding that she speak in Marathi, she claimed. The man who lives on the ground floor of the same building allegedly twisted the arm of the pillion rider, they said in a complaint filed at Vishnunagar police station.