Dalit beaten up in Tiruvarur
Mahalingam (57), a Dalit of Thelikottai, Tiruvarur district, who was
beaten up allegedly by a caste Hindu family for refusing to sell his
land to them
Gokul VannanFirst Published : 23 Nov 2009 02:16:00 AM ISTLast Updated
: 23 Nov 2009 07:24:41 AM IST
CHENNAI: When Mahalingam, a Dalit hailing from Thelikottai, refused to
sell a small patch of land in his possession, he crossed an invisible
caste line that resulted in physical torture and humiliation.
The 57-year-old man was tied to a tree and beaten up with weapons and
slippers, when he refused to sell his land to M Thangadurai (45), who
belongs to the Thevar community.
The incident is reported to have happened on November 17. Mahalingam
owns a 30-cent piece of land adjoining Thangadurai's land in
Thelikottai village. It is alleged that Thangadurai had been pressing
Mahalingam to sell the land to him. "As he has four sons, my father
refused to pay heed to Thangadurai demands," said M Ramesh, third son
of Mahalingam.
Mahalingam told Express that along with seven other men, Thangadurai
dragged him out of the house, tied him to a tree and thrashed him.
"They claimed that my goats had entered their fields. They humiliated
me and used abusive language," he said.
There are only 30 Dalit families in the village. Others have left out
of fear of retaliation from the powerful Thevar community, Ramesh
claimed. "Dalits are dependent on them for their livelihood," he
added.
On hearing the news that his father was beaten up, Ramesh rushed home
from Kumbakkonam. " On reaching here I found that my home was
ransacked and my father reeling under pain.''
After lodging a police complaint, Ramesh took his father to the
hospital. Mahalingam is now slowly recovering in the hospital. He said
when Thangadurai and his associates learnt about the police complaint
they escaped to Chennai.
Meanwhile the police informed that they have launched a search. ``A
special police team is searching for them in Chennai. They escaped to
Chennai with the aim of obtaining anticipatory bail before we arrest
them,'' said R Gunasekaran, Deputy Superintendent of Police,
Mannargudi Taluk, Tiruvarur district.
Madurai-based NGO Evidence, which had done a field study in the
village, urged the government to arrest the accused.
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