HRDs from marginalised castes face more difficulties in continuing human rights work
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Human Rights Defenders Alert (HRDA), a forum of Human Rights Defenders, has urged the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to intervene in a reported murder of a young human rights defender on the lines of caste. Ashok from Tirunelveli district in Tamil Nadu (TN) was murdered on June 12, 2019. HRDA has drawn NHRC’s attention on the issue saying “this particular case is yet again an example of caste discrimination and reprisal against human rights defender Ashok for taking a stand against caste atrocities.”
Ashok, who belonged to the Pallar community, a sub-caste among Dalits was the District Treasurer of Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), CPI (M)’s youth wing. Ashok had been continuously working on various social issues in the district of Tirunelveli, especially in his village of Karaiyiruppu. He had been extensively working against incidents and issues of caste discrimination, especially against the members of Pallar community to which he belongs.
HRDA has alleged that the murder was committed by a “gang of persons from dominant community.”
Details of the incident
On April 21, 2019, around 4.30 pm, Ashok and his mother were travelling on a bike. They had the harvest from their field. As they were reaching a nearby temple Uchimakaliamman, their bike reportedly hit another bike, which was parked in the middle of the road. The bike belonged to a person from the ‘dominant community.’
Soon afterwards, a group of five persons, all from upper caste, allegedly led by one Pechiraja stopped Ashok and abused him. The attackers used filthy language and abused his caste. Ashok’s mother, who tried to intervene and stop them, was also attacked. Both sustained injuries and were later admitted into Palayamkottai Government hospital.
Ashok filed a complaint against this incident at Thatchanallur police station in Tirunelveli district against the five persons in the presence of the Inspector of Police, Meenatchinathan. However, no action was taken against the attackers and a reverse case was lodged on Ashok.
HRDA has alleged that since the time of this incident and subsequent lodging of FIR, the accused, Pechiraja and his acquaintances “developed enmity towards Ashok”. HRDA also said that they were planning to avenge this.
On June 12, 2019, as Ashok was leaving his workplace with his father Murugan and his friends Sivasankar, Gouthaman and Murugan to catch the company bus near Sibakumar mills in the village, he was reportedly attacked by the same persons namely Pechiraja, Ramachandra Thevar, Mookan, Ganesan, Balu, Murugan, Subramaniam. Allegedly they attacked Ashok with machetes and other deadly weapons on his head and chest. The gang shouted at Ashok saying that “How dare you act against our caste and file case against us. You can only act against us if you are alive” and mercilessly attacked Ashok and hacked him to death and as a result Ashok died on the spot. Afterwards, the gang fled from the spot. Ashok’s father and his friends couldn’t help him as they were threatened and kept aside.
Attacks on HRDs
Several reports in the past have highlighted that human rights defenders, especially belonging to marginalised castes are more susceptible to attacks and interference in their work. HRDA said that there was a need to address the issue of caste discrimination which is still prevalent in the country.
The Declaration on Human Rights Defenders, adopted in 1998 by the UN General Assembly, states that governments are under a duty to “take all necessary measures to ensure the protection of human rights defenders by the competent authorities against any violence, threats, retaliation, de facto or de jure adverse discrimination, pressure or any other arbitrary actions” as a consequence of their efforts to promote human rights.
Therefore, it said that the government is bound by its by its international legal obligations to ensure that all activists and human rights defenders are provided with security against harassment or intimidation so that they may enjoy their constitutional right to due process, life and liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
Despite several international mandates to protect HRDs and to provide them a safe and secure environment to work, HRDs across the world have faced the wrath of not just regressive elements on the ground, but also hostile, apathetic and almost vindictive governments. HRDs such as Ashok, routinely come under attack and even lose their lives. The existence of many structures on the ground, makes it especially hard for the HRDs to work.
As per a 2017 Amnesty report,
- 3,500 human rights defenders have been killed worldwide since 1998
- 281 HRDs killed globally in 2016—a significant increase from 156 defenders killed in 2015 and 136 in 2014
- 48 journalists killed worldwide in 2016 according to the Committee to Protect Journalist
- India among deadliest countries for defenders of rights related to land, environment
Another report titled Defending in Numbers by the Asia Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA), documented 88 cases of violations and abuses affecting 4,854 people — including human rights organisations, local communities and media outlets — across 18 countries in the continent between 2017 and 2018.
Most common forms of violation were:
- Judicial harassment (327 cases)
- (Arbitrary) arrest and detention (249 cases)
- Violence (164 cases)
HRDA has appealed to the NHRC to take necessary steps and to address the grave state of affairs.
• Order an immediate, independent, thorough, transparent, effective and impartial investigation into the above-mentioned incident of brutal murder of Dalit HRD Ashok;
• Ensure that the investigation on the brutal murder of Dalit HRD Ashok is expedited and a charge-sheet is filed soon to bring the perpetrators to trial before the court of law;
• Ensure that Karaiyiruppu village in Tirunelveli, given the history of caste-based violence towards the Dalits be identified as violence-prone area under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and adequate protection is given to Dalit families who are facing continuous threats from persons belonging to dominant community;
• Ensure that the family of deceased Dalit HRD Ashok receives compensation under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act;
• Ensure that one person in the family of Ashok is provided a government job as per their qualification.
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