“If they are Hindus, what are we then?” asked a young man, who was part of a group gathered outside the house of Balaraj, one among the five Dalits attacked on July 10 by a Hindutva group on the charge of stealing and slaughtering a cow.
Part of vedike
Gurumurthy, a Dalit youth, was one of the founders of Hindu Jagaran Vedike’s branch in Kunduru near here. Four years ago, he conducted an event in the village organising all Dalits.
“In fact, we conducted Satyanarayana puja to mark the inauguration of the branch four years ago. But, we left the organisation after we realised that the leaders were opposed to our food habits,” he said. The attackers are believed to be associated with Bajrang Dal.
‘Part of food culture’
Dhanush (23), another injured in the incident, told The Hindu : “Yes, beef is part of our diet and food culture. If consuming it is against law, let the police take action. How can anyone else beat us up?” Mr. Balaraj and the other Dalits of Shantipura village said that beef had been part of their food culture for ages. “We can’t afford mutton (sheep or goat), which costs more than Rs. 400 a kg, said Sarasu, Mr. Balaraj’s wife.
As the Dalit youths learnt that senior police officers was visiting the village on Monday, they gathered outside Mr. Balaraj’s place and raised their voice against the Bajrang Dal activists, who were the alleged attackers. Mr. Dhanush said that he personally knew some of those who attacked him.
‘Intolerance’
None of the Dalit families in the village have land to till. The youths work as labourers in plantations to earn their livelihood.
A few have got into other works like driving, painting and construction. “The upper caste people in the village do not tolerate if we move around wearing good clothes. They look for some reason to assault us,” said Mr. Gurumurthy.
Beef is part of our diet and food culture. If consuming it is against law, let the police take action. How can anyone else beat us up: Dhanush, a victim
