November  2003 
Year 10    No.93

Dalit Drishti


Rs. 5 lakh compensation to Jhajjar victims’ kin
Nearly a year after five Dalit men were beaten to death and two others burnt alive, by a mob at Dulina in the Jhajjar district of Haryana, the state government has paid a sum of Rs. 5 lakh each to the families of the deceased and given jobs to one dependent from each family. In addition, a punishment of stoppage of two increments permanently to 11 police personnel had been ordered and disciplinary enquiry in respect of five other police officers initiated. The governmental action follows the recommendations of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) which took suo motu action after newspapers reported the dastardly crime last October. As shocking as the killing was the conduct of government officials who were silent witnesses to the crime — the victims were reportedly dragged out of a police post where they had hidden and lynched in the presence of the city magistrate, the deputy superintendent of police of Jhajjar and Bhadurgarh, the block development officer and at least 50 policemen. The NHRC which continues to monitor the case has asked the state to produce the inquiry report against the five officials facing disciplinary enquiry.

Death for ‘daring’ to launch a Dalit body
Little had Narayanappa known that the setting up of an Ambedkar Youth Association would result in him losing his life. Forty-year-old Narayanappa, a Dalit resident of Attibele village in Hoskote, Karnataka, was one of the Dalit men instrumental in setting up the Ambedkar Youth Association. This became cause for resentment from the upper caste Hindus of the village, since it was something unacceptable to them. In spite of the objections raised by the upper castes, the Dalits of the village insisted on setting up the association. This resulted in an attack on the Dalits, allegedly led by Muniraju, an upper caste Hindu, early this month. Narayanappa succumbed to his injuries while eight others were injured. Incidents like these reflect the battered face of democracy in India.

Jharkhand move against tribal trafficking
According to a survey conducted by People’s Awakening for Traditional Revival and Advancement (PATRA), there are at least 2,500 to 3,000 tribal girls from all over Jharkhand who migrate to metropolitan cities every year. Poverty is a conspicuous cause for most who leave their families to go and look for jobs in big cities that offer more opportunities. Some are lured into leaving their homes by brokers who make tall claims, and the girls don’t have an option but to take up petty jobs. Trafficking of tribal girls has also resulted in forced prostitution. Most victims in such cases are from Ranchi, Gumla, Lohardagga and Hazaribagh. Taking the grave situation into consideration, the Jharkhand government, in a bid to curb such exodus of young tribal girls, has decided to set up check-posts that will administer the movement of men and women en masse. The decision was taken by the Jharkhand government early this month. Trafficking of girls from such remote areas is a thriving business for those involved, so if the government wants to curb the menace, implementation of these measures needs to be made foolproof.

Dalit death heat on cops
Om Prakash alias KB Paswan, a resident of Danapur, was found dead in a marsh in Rukanpura late last month. Lok Janshakti party leader Ram Vilas Paswan has threatened to launch an agitation against those police officials who were responsible for the death of Prakash, a 37-year-old Dalit who was an electrical mechanic by profession. The incident took place when Prakash, who was working at Rukanpura under Danapur police station at the time, went out to a roadside tea stall where a few residents were holding a roadblock in order to collect money for Chhat Puja. In a bid to disperse the group, the police resorted to a lathi-charge. On hearing about the lathi-charge, his family members started searching for him and even reported his absence at the local police station. The police denied knowing anyone by that name. The following day, Prakash’s body was found close to where the lathi-charge had taken place. The alleged killing of Prakash by the police has created a furore within the Dalit community.

A beacon in Bihar
One of the most "wretchedly oppressed" communities among the untouchables in Bihar are the Musahars. But the initiative taken by some of them to break away from the shackles of upper caste control shines out like a "beacon of hope." The Musahars of Bihar’s Jamshaut village have managed to establish their position and right: the right to worship in the local Shiv Mandir run by the upper caste Hindus. After being denied entry for the inauguration of a new temple in the village, the Musahars got together early this month and managed to enter the Shiv Mandir, offer their prayers and walk out, while all the upper caste men could do was look on helplessly. One person whose efforts were responsible for the Musahars taking such a bold step is a Christian missionary from Bangalore, Ms. Sudha Varghese. She has been working with the Musahars in the village for almost 15 years, focussing mainly on the level of education that is imparted to the villagers, so crucial in enhancing their self-esteem. The state and central governments need to acknowledge her efforts and improve their own, in combating Dalit exploitation in Bihar.

Ostracised Dalit attempts suicide at police station
Fifty-year-old Kali Venkateswara Rao, a Dalit agricultural worker and a resident of Kommirepalli in Eluru, in Andhra Pradesh is battling for life in the intensive care unit at the government hospital after he attempted suicide. The reason why he took such a step was the social boycott imposed upon him and his family by their caste elders. It all started when it was learnt that Rao’s son, Balaswamy, was allegedly involved in a love affair. The case was then taken to the caste panchayat, where community elders ordered Rao to appear before them. Since Rao was ill and in no condition to appear before the panchayat, he asked if he could appear before them the following morning. But by then the orders for the social boycott had been issued and no sooner did that happen, the family was denied work and social contact. Though Rao lodged a complaint at the Denduluru police station, no action was taken against those who had imposed the social boycott on Rao and his family. Finding himself in an extremely helpless situation, Rao took the extreme step.

Police accused of harassing Dalits
The Dalits of Thoti Harijanwada in Tsundupalle mandal, Cuddapah, have accused the police of harassing them on the pretext that the villagers were party to the raids by People’s War Group (PWG) that took place in the mandal in May this year. Since then, the police have been raiding and terrorising the villagers almost every day, forcing most people, including women, to flee the village. Apart from the harassment they cause, the policemen have been involved in looting as well. Ravindra, a Dalit labourer, was arrested under POTA and underwent imprisonment for six months. Another accused, Venkatesh, was tortured to such an extent that he was compelled to give names of people who were not even remotely connected with the PWG. The Dalits live in constant uncertainty because they do not know when the next police raid will take place and have therefore demanded from the district collector that strict action be taken against the guilty police personnel.

In Bihar, even horses have castes
Bihar has once again proved that there are multiple ways and means to torture the lower castes. Caste distinction has been so vigorously rubbed into the mindsets of the people that they do not refrain from leaving any "horse" unturned. Believe it or not, but at the 20-day Sonepur cattle fair near Patna this month, the horses were categorised as Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Shudras, depending on their colour, size and behaviour. White horses with wide foreheads are considered Brahmins; brown horses with keen ears and broad chests are Kshatriyas; Vaishyas are maroon with thin legs and long necks and a dark brown inferior variety is a Shudra. While the Brahmin horses are well mannered, the Shudra variety is just the opposite. It is a subtle way of reminding society that the distinctions are not to be forgotten and every aspect of life is governed by it.

7 UP Dalits murdered over goat
It may be unimaginable for us that a minor incident like the straying of a goat into someone’s fields can claim seven lives but for people living in areas where instances of casteist clashes are an everyday affair, it comes as no surprise. A goat belonging to Gangaram, a member of the Kanjad community and a resident of Dostpur Shivli village in Unnao district, UP, strayed into Ramnath Pasi’s fields early this month; both men being Dalits but belonging to different communities. The Pasi community rounded up Gangaram and his family and beat them brutally. The Kanjad community then retaliated but little did they know that it would result in them losing seven members of their community, including three children. Gangaram’s family was locked inside the house, which was set on fire by the Pasi community. It was done with a view to teach the Kanjad community a lesson and the village pradhan was allegedly responsible for encouraging men from the Pasi community to carry out the deed. Within a week of this incident, another incident of ‘goat grazing’ came to light in the Unnao district of UP, where three people were killed. Two of the three deceased were Dalits and one a Thakur. The incident took place when goats belonging to the villagers of the Raidas community, who are Dalits, entered the field of Ram Naresh Singh, a Thakur. A brief altercation took place between the two groups, followed by the death of three people and injuries to three others.

Churches to fight new law on conversions
Our aim is to ensure that secular nature and the principles of equality are not violated by conversions." These are the words of Bizay Shankar Shastri, chairman of India’s Programme for the Protection of Lower Castes and Tribal People. The statement comes at a time when the central government is planning to bring in a law that will prevent Hindus from converting. Though the law has not yet been approved by the Indian Parliament, once implemented, it can acquire "fearsome proportions." As per the proposed law, anyone wishing to convert has to apply with an affidavit before a district collector or an equal authority. Only after official written permission has been granted can a person convert. Such measures to "safeguard the interests of the Hindu community", are ways to target Christian missionaries who have been working with the poor in rural India, as critics have pointed out. It also strikes at the fundamental right of 350 million illiterate people who may want to convert, without any external force or inducement, but who cannot do so because of the clause stipulating that a person who wishes to convert has to have undergone higher secondary education.

 


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