Differences over caste haunt not just the living but also the dead, as the controversy over the burial of 11-year-old Swetha, who died of cancer in the city, indicates.
The local community in Hennur refused to allow the girl’s burial as she belonged to a different caste. They refused to relent for two consecutive days, despite police intervention on Sunday.
With no option left, the bereaved family was forced to transport Swetha’s body to their home town Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu on Sunday.
Devi Chikkamma, Swetha’s aunt, said though the family was from Krishnagiri, they had been living in Babusapalya, near Hennur, for the past 30 years.
“We had performed the last rites our family members here in the past. But this time, the local community did not let us, saying that we belong to a different community,” she said.
On Sunday, the family members approached the police after failing to convince the local residents. The police summoned the local community members and tried counselling them. They community members, however, refused to budge.
The police denied the caste angle, claiming that the burial ground is on encroached lakebed, which is why local people objected to the burial.
Hegdenagar ground
“We had even arranged a place in Hegdenagar burial ground for the last rites and assured security to the family. But they decided to take the body to their home town fearing repercussion,” a senior police officer said.
Deputy Commissioner of Bengaluru Urban district V. Shankar said it was illegal to object to the last rites of any person in any graveyard citing caste and community reasons, unless it is a private burial ground.
The district administration had identified around 200 burial grounds in and around Bengaluru Urban for all communities.