Rahul offers hope but not enough reason for Mirchpur Dalits to return
Aanchal Bansal Posted online: Wed May 05 2010, 08:47 hrs
Hisar : For the past ten days, the front lawn of the district
collector's office in Hisar has been home to over 50 Dalit families of
Mirchpur village. Their homes were torched over a dispute by a group
of men from the Jat community on April 21.
The nondescript village nearly 60 km off Hisar has suddenly become a
hub of activity after the violent attack that claimed two lives — that
of an 18- year -old polio-stricken girl Suman and her 70 -year-old
father Tarachand. While special police forces patrol the area to
prevent another flare -up, it was AICC general Secretary Rahul
Gandhi's quick visit (without CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda) on April 30
that seems to have got the authorities moving in the case.
Gandhi's visit, which was meant to be seen as statement of 'strong
disapproval' of the way things were handled by the state government
both before and after the incident, was followed by the arrest of
Station House Officer Vinod Kajal and the district Tehsildar on May 1.
Both were booked in an FIR lodged on April 22 accusing them of
colluding with the Jat community and allowing the incident to happen.
Both Kajal and the Tehsildar will be kept in judicial custody till May
6 and have been booked under the SC/ST Act and the IPC for murder.
According to Superintendent of Police Subhash Yadav, the police has
arrested 31 of the 43 men from the Jat community named in the FIR
lodged by the Dalit group.
While the state government has announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh
each to the families affected and a government job to the members of
the family of the two deceased, the Dalits have, as a measure of
protest, refused to go back to their village. Kamla Devi, Tarachand's
wife and Suman's mother has refused to take the compensation amount of
Rs 10 lakh.
"I will not go back to the village. They killed my husband and
daughter there," says Kamla who was taken to the district hospital
earlier during the day after she fainted on Sunday morning. Kamla's
son Deepak (18) adds, "Rahul Gandhi visited the village and said that
he would speak to the chief minister and ensure that such incidents do
not happen again. But we do not want to go back."
Gandhi's visit seems to have given the Dalits the hope of a new home
outside the caste lines drawn in their village. "We want a new plot of
land and they could call it Rajiv Basti if they want," offered Jaswant
Kumar, whose house was completely burnt down in the violence. "This
tension between them and us has always been a part of our lives. But
what is the point of going back now...my entire house along with my
belongings were charred in the fire. There is no reason to go back,"
Jaswant adds.
According to a fact-finding team comprising activists from NGOs
National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights and ANHAD along with
journalists that had visited the village three days after the
incident, Mirchpur has a handful of Dalits: about 100 Balmiki families
and 350 'Jatav' families against the 1700-odd Jat families.
According to Shabnam Hashmi of ANHAD, the team found that the violent
attack was only 'ostensibly' about a dog being pelted with a brick.
"It was a manifestation of long -tension between the two communities.
They specifically attacked the well-off in the village that happened
to be Dalits....three houses had weddings planned and they
particularly damaged things like television sets that often are a
symbol of well being in villages," she said. The team found that one
of the reasons for the clash was a contract for building a fish pond
being awarded to a Dalit contractor.
The families that have been camping at the district office are being
supported by Dalit action groups and NGOs for their daily supply of
food. An ambulance and a doctor from the district hospital visits the
camp twice everyday, treating villagers for dehydration. "It is very
hot and most of the patients are women. Kamla Devi herself has fainted
twice in the last 24 hours," says Dr SP Singh while sorting out the
packets of glucose and tablets meant to be given to the group.
"Security forces have been deployed in the area to make Dalit families
feel secure,' Deputy Commissioner (Hisar) O P Sheron, said.
While the matter has acquired political overtones over the last few
days, increasing after Gandhi's visit, Tarachand's own family is
divided on the issue of compensation. Elder son Amar Lal has taken his
share of the compensation and taken the job of a clerk, while the
other two brothers are on the dharna.
"He is the son of my husband's first wife. This is very unfortunate,"
Kamla Devi says.
While Amar Lal conducted the thirteenth day ceremony, meant to mark
the end of mourning for his father on Friday, Kamla Devi and her two
sons conducted the ceremony at the district office on Sunday morning.
"We will not budge till we are given a new house," Deepak adds. Back
in the village Amar Lal says, "I have to rebuild the house and there
is no point sitting there. We need to get on with our lives," he said.
Amar Lal joined the district office as a clerk on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Village Panchayat, represented by all members of the
community met the agitating Dalits on Monday morning. "We have spoken
to them and have assured them safety. This matter has to end and they
can't stay out of the village for ever," said advocate Manphool Singh,
who headed the Panchayat.
" The Dalits will get back to us on this on Wednesday," he added.
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