An eerie calm prevailed in Gonugunta village, near Chimakurthy, where the Dalits are allegedly subjected to an unannounced social boycott as a fallout of the bickering during the conduct of the village festival last week.
A team of police officials, led by Ongole Deputy Superintendent of Police G. Srinivasa Rao, held marathon talks with the Dalit and “caste” Hindu groups on Wednesday night to iron out their differences and bring about an understanding between them.
Dalits in the village decided to step up protests as there was no change in the situation. A delegation of Dalit outfit Kula Nirmula Porata Sangam(KNPS), led by its State Assistant Secretary Duddu Venkat Rao, camped in the village to express solidarity with the beleaguered Dalits.
Agitated over the continuing boycott of Dalits, they decided to hold demonstration in front of the Mandal Revenue Office in Chimakurthy on Thursday to press their demands, including the immediate visit of Prakasam District Collector V. Vinay Chand and Superintendent of Police C.M. Trivikram Varma to the trouble-torn village.
Meanwhile, a group of Dalit youth led by K. Kalyan urged the State government to arrange for wage employment under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme for one year for the Dalits in the village, as they were denied work in the farms of “'caste” Hindus.
