Muralidhara Khajane
‘Caste Hindus’ refusing to employ them in their fields: police
A peace meeting was held in the village recently
Officials have failed to resolve the problem, say Dalits
MYSORE: About 50 Dalit families in Kandegala village in Gundlupet taluk of Chamarajanagar district are facing social boycott from “caste Hindus” in the village for the last few days.
According to Gundlupet police, a frivolous dispute between a Dalit and a “caste Hindu” family resulted in a clash and “caste Hindus” are now refusing to employ them in their fields.
Dalits are complaining that their television cables were snapped and they were being forced to fetch water from a distance as some miscreants had damaged a hand-pump. However, the police said that water supply had been restored after the pump was repaired.
Arakalavadi Nagendra, secretary of Babu Jagjivan Ram Sangha, told The Hindu that “caste Hindus” had cautioned villagers against employing Dalits in their fields. He said that Dalits were not being allowed to pass through the main streets in the village and the fields of “caste Hindus”. They had been cautioned of serious repercussions in case of violation of this diktat, he said.
Condemning the social boycott, Dalit leader Venkataramana Swamy said it was regrettable that the tradition of social boycott was continuing even at the time when the country would celebrate sixty years of Independence.
Accusing the “caste Hindus” of harassing them, the Dalits alleged that the officials had failed to resolve the problem as they belonged to “upper castes”.
Besides demanding action against the miscreants who cut the cables of their televisions and damaged the hand-pump, the Dalits have urged the officials to construct a separate colony for them.
They also complained that they were not being allowed to work in the fields owned by farmers of neighbouring villages.
The Dalit families have appealed to Deputy Commissioner Vishwanatha Reddy to protect their interests. Assistant Commissioner Sathyabhama and Deputy Superintendent of Police Shivakumar held talks with both the groups. They also held a peace meeting in the village on Wednesday.
The authorities have formed a coordination committee comprising of five Dalits and five “caste Hindus” to resolve the issue.
However, tahsildar of Gundlupet Devaraj said that a petty dispute between a Dalit and a “caste Hindu” family had been blown out of proportion by the media.
No improvement
Mr. Nagendra said that the situation in the village had not improved even after the meeting was conducted by the district administration.
“Leaders of ‘upper caste’, who agreed at the meeting to cooperate with Dalits, have failed to do so. The Dalits are complaining about the continuation of social boycott in the village,” he said.
Member of Legislative Council and chairman of Scheduled Caste unit of Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee, N. Manjunath, visited the village on Friday and appealed to both the groups to live in harmony.
Sources in the district administration said that the Deputy Commissioner and district in-charge Minister Mahadev Prasad would be visiting the village soon.
