Dalits from Modi’s Home District of Mehsana and the CM’s home taluka of Visnagar threaten Self-Immolation
Image for representation purpose only
Something is amiss in the state of Denmark. The proverbial Shakespearean phrase appears to sum it all.
Yesterday, May Day 2016, more than 300 rural families employed in the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme in Jharkhand's Latehar, one of India's poorest districts, have donated their small annual wage increase to prime minister Narendra Modi. The workers attached five rupee notes to a letter addressed to the prime minister that was posted on May Day.
“The government must be really short of money if it is unable to raise NREGA wages to the minimum wage, that too when one third of the rural population is affected by drought,” reads the letter by the workers, noting that the central government had increased their wage this year by only Rs 5, from Rs 162 to Rs 167 earlier in April. This the villagers of this village in Latehar, Jharkand saw as an insult. Rs 167 is Rs 45 below the state minimum wage Rs 212 per day in Jharkhand. There are over 1.1 lakh families in Latehar district working in the scheme under which the government provides 100 days of employment a year to any rural household willing to do manual work – building public works such as roads, ponds, wells. Of this, 43% are women, and 37% are tribals.
Then today, May 2, the very next day, The Times of India and The Indian Express have broken the news that 35 Dalit families, living in Nedali village of Mehsana, just 15 kilometres from Modi’s hometown of Vadnagar have threatened self-immolation due to the humiliating boycott that they face. The boycott is on account of their struggle for justice under the Atrocities Act — they dared to seek legal actions against alleged atrocities committed by eight members of upper castes in the village—and that is not on in Mehsana. It is this extreme discrimination has forced them to write to the chief minister seeking her leave to immolate themselves in a village just 15 km Modi's home town, Vadanagar. All this while the BJP dominated NDA II government seeks to appropriate Babasaheb Ambedkar and the country as a whole is celebrating Dr BR Ambedkar’s 125th birth anniversary.
Dalits Discriminated in Gujarat
Dalits are not a happy lot in the state of Gujarat. A quick look at the detailed documentation of violence and exclusion suffered by Dalits in the state since January this year reveal sharp and persistent cases of exclusion, violence and a denial of basic rights especially in Mehsana district and even in Sabarkantha.
Only in February this year, Dalit families from Lakshmipura-Bhandu, a small village of Visnagar taluka also in Mehsana ( Mehsana is also the home district of Anandi Patel, chief minister) were ‘not allowed’ to build a toilet! Even with today's reports of this letter seeking permission to self-immolate another one, of a Dalit groom and his family members being attacked and assaulted for ‘daring to ride a horse’ during the marriage procession )Khadol village Sabarkantha were documented by the media. Newspapers say this is the second such incident in 12 days.
In January 2016, on two separate occasions, Dalit sarpanches were not ‘allowed’ to hoist the national flag, the tricolour, on Republic Day.
The government, following the famed Gujarat model, has also passed a controversial land acquisition bill that will deprive small land-owners, farmers, Dalits, Adivais,owners of any say in land acquired by big business and government (April 1, 2016) but is doing precious little on issue related to the fundamental protection of the rights of all it citizens. The resistance of the Gujarat government to make public the Inquiry Report into the Thangadh firing that left three Dalits dead after Gujarat police officers had used AK-47s to kill peaceful protesters.
But this letter written by 35 Dalit families representing a few hundred residents of the village seriously questions the government. The Times of India reports that the letter written by Babubhai Shankarbhai Senma, 46, of Nandali in Kheralu taluka of Mehsana district, addressed to the chief minister, says that Senma families, comprising 35 members, seek permission of self-immolation as members of upper castes have forced all villagers to boycott them. The boycott is in reaction to Senmas seeking legal action against eight upper caste persons under atrocity laws.
According to the letter accessed by the TOI, Senma, who belongs to Dalit community, had gone to Mehsana district industrial centre to seek a sewing machine for her daughter-in-law, when one of the accused, identified as Jujarji Parmar, had hurled casterelated slurs and slapped him. Following the incident, Senma had approached local police, but no actions were initiated. However, the accused as ked villagers to boycott Senma and other members of his community. Following the direction from the upper caste member, villagers had not only boycotted the Senmas, but also stopped supplying essential commodities to them.
“Senma community members are not being given food grains, water, milk and fodder for their cattle. The villagers have stopped employing Senmas as daily wage labourers. Upper caste community members have issued diktat that if any villager is found employing a member of Senma community , then he too will be boycotted,“ said the letter. Senma alleged in his letter that the upper caste community members have been threatening Dalits to leave the village or face dire consequences.
“The accused persons are threatening to burn us alive. Despite making several representations to the state administration, no government representative came to meet us. Therefore, please allow us permission for self-immolation," said Senma.