http://indiatoday.intoday.in/site/Story/129857/latest-headlines/up-dalit-farmer-shot-at-by-bsp-mlcs-son-over-property-dispute-in-bareilly.html
UP Dalit farmer shot at by BSP leader in Bareilly
Piyush Srivastava | Lucknow, February 15, 2011 | Updated 09:33 IST
A dalit farmer in Nawabganj, Bareilly was shot at by a Bahujan Samaj
Party (BSP) leader on Sunday in another instance of rising atrocities
against members of the community in Uttar Pradesh.
Munendra Gangwar, 30, the son of BSP MLC Kesar Singh Gangwar,
allegedly opened fire on Kalicharan Jatav because the farmer had
refused to sell 15 bighas of agricultural land to the leader at a
throwaway price.
Kalicharan, who was admitted to the local district hospital with a
bullet injury on his left arm, claimed Munendra had tried to kidnap
him first.
" He ( Kesar) forced me into an SUV at midnight, saying his father
wanted to speak to me.
When I tried to escape, he fired several shots at me. Thinking I was
dead, he then pushed me out of the SUV and escaped," recounted
Kalicharan.
The BSP MLC had allegedly killed Kalicharan's brother earlier to get
his hand on the land. " Kesar Singh's henchmen killed my brother two
years ago as he had also refused to sell the plot," Kalicharan
recounted. The case is pending in the court.
" I told the police that the MLC and his goons were forcing me to sell
the land. I also said my life was in danger.
But they didn't help me," he said. The police have registered a case
against Munendra and his two accomplices, but are allegedly trying to
protect the MLC. Kesar Singh Gangwar, whose entire family professes
loyalty to the BSP, denied the charges. " My rivals are trying to
malign my image. I don't want to grab anybody's land.
The injured person is making these claims under the influence of my
rivals," he said.
UP chief minister Mayawati, herself a Dalit, is in the eye of a storm
because of the rising crimes against Dalits in the state. In December
last year, BSP MLA from Banda, Purushottam Naresh Dwivedi, allegedly
raped a 17- year- old Dalit girl.
The latest report of the National Crime Record Bureau ( NCRB) says
that UP led the country in the number of crimes against Dalits in
2009. Of a total of 3,35,94 crimes against Dalits in 2009, 7522 took
place in UP, followed by Rajasthan ( 4985), Andhra Pradesh ( 4504),
Bihar ( 3836), Madhya Pradesh ( 3040) and Maharashtra ( 1096).
The state also had the mostreported instances of violation of the
Scheduled Castes / Scheduled Tribes ( Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Of a total of 1,11,43 cases in the country, 2554 cases ( 22.9 per
cent) took place in UP. However, Mayawati recently claimed that crimes
against SCs in UP was much lower than in other states. " This is
because the UP Police have taken 94.8 per cent cases to the logical
conclusion, whereas in 36 states, only 74.1 per cent crimes against
SCs could be solved," she had said, quoting the NCRB report.
" The state government has given clear instructions to senior police
officers to visit all areas where crimes against SCs happen," she
added.
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