Dalit denied last rites
OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT
Hyderabad, Jan. 1: A 65-year-old Dalit farmer was denied last rites in
Andhra Pradesh because the upper castes refused to allow him to be
cremated in the village and let his body rot at home for two days.
Potla Ganganna, who died around 11am on Thursday, was buried on
government land outside the village tonight. His body was too
decomposed to be cremated.
Ganganna's relatives had been turned away from the cremation ground by
the upper castes in Basampalli village in Anantpur, 415km from
Hyderabad, and told to find another resting place for the farmer. The
family who belong to the Namdhari sect of Dalits returned home with
the body.
The Mandal Revenue Officer, Mehabub Peera, suggested an alternative
site but the Modikallu Dalits — a higher sect than the Namdharis —
objected because it was close to their homes.
"We will not allow a Namdhari burial near our homes," said Nagappa,
head of the Modikallu sect, which is dominant among the Dalits in the
village.
The Namdhari last rites include the ringing of bells and beating of
drums and are considered a bad omen by the superstitious.
The 15 Namdhari Dalit families in the village clashed with the others
for stopping the cremation.
Revenue officer Peera rushed to the spot this morning amid reports of
tension and the health hazard caused by the decomposed body.
Police forces also reached Basampalli and the revenue department held
discussions with both sides to sort out the problem. But Ganganna
could not find a resting place in his village.
"Untouchability" has always been practised in the village that has a
population of around 3,000, Dalit elders in Basampalli said. Around 40
Dalit families live in the village.
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