A Historic Meet Resolves to End the Indignities of Caste on India’s 70th Independence Day
Una, Gir, Saurashtra, Gujarat
“Many of the vehicles carrying Dalit and other protesters trying to arrive at Una are being stoned and attacked on Gujarat’s highways. Mnay of those injured are reporting t police station of injuries that are serious, with wounds. The State Government appears hand in glove with the Gau Rakshaks who are Attacking the Una Yatra and Mahasammelan Participants.” Jignesh Mewani, Dalit leader.
Defying all odds, including disparate and desperate attempts (including attacks on vehicles carrying protesters to Una) to obstruct the overflowing support from all over the country the #Chalo Una March converged and huge crowds were visible this morning gathering for the historic 70th Independence Day Rally. Such an unprecedented gathering is a first in the recent political history of Gujarat.
Slogans for Dalit-Muslim Unity marked this ten day march that began in Ahmedabad on August 5 and ended yesterday morning. All along the 81 kilometres, women and men took a Pledge to Renounce the undignified forms of labour that were assigned to India’s Dalits by the exclusivist caste system. On July 27, about 250-300 Dalits had marched in Naroda Patiya with banners of Dalit-Muslim unity, in public acknowledgement and apology for the violence they were made to inflict on the minorities on February 28, 2002.
“Many of the vehicles carrying Dalit and other protesters trying to arrive at Una are being stoned and attacked on Gujarat’s highways. Many of those injured are reporting to police station of injuries that are serious, with wounds. The State Government appears hand in glove with the Gau Rakshaks who are Attacking the Una Yatra and Mahasammelan Participants.” Jignesh Mewani, Dalit leader.
Here are pictures from the mass rally that took place in Una, Gujarat today. The venue is the HDH School Ground. Over 15,000 marchers had already gathered by 9 a.m. By afernoon the crowds had swelled to a least about 25,000.
Una (or Unnatnagar) is a city and a municipality in Gir Somnath district of the Saurashtra region in the state of Gujarat, India.
Radhika Vemula, Mother of Dalit Research Scholar Rohith Vemula Addresses the Rally
Radhika Vemula who spoke at the Una rally greeted Muslims at the gathering especially. She said in her speech that she was here, part of the struggle to ensure that what happened to her son, Rohith Vemula, does not happen to any other child. “Every Dalit child here is like mine. The country belongs to us all, not to a particular caste or religion alone. We all pledge to defend Baba Saheb’s Constitution! Educate your kids like Dr Ambedkar. Don’t let them be slaves. My son hasn’t got justice yet. You have succeeded in getting your chief minister removed, that is a huge achievement. Until there is life in me, I pledge to fight for Dalit rights. Jai Gujarat Dalits, Jai Bheem!”
What about suspended Vice Chancellor of Hyderabad Central University, Appa Rao who is completely responsible for the death of Rohith Vemula, who chose not to respond to the letter written by Rohith Vemula on December 18, 2015 ?
Rohith Vemula posted on Facebook two years back on August 15, 2013:
“Another Independence Day just came by to tickle our meagre everyday life. But we should be “Proud of being an Indian”. Even 67 years after independence there are class differences and caste discrimination but we should “Love our Nation”.
