Latest News Update: May 30, 2011

Monday, May 30, 2011

[ZESTCaste] National dalit panel claims two boys missing in Greater Noida

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-27/india/29590896_1_dalit-boys-land-acquisition-farmers

National dalit panel claims two boys missing in Greater Noida
May 27, 2011, 01.31am IST

NEW DELHI: National Commission for SCs may summon officials of Gautam
Buddh Nagar, claiming that two dalit boys were missing since the
police action on Bhatta Parsaul.

NCSC chief P L Punia's day-long visit on Thursday to the villages hit
by farmer-police clashes appeared an extension of Congress's campaign
against UP chief minister Mayawati, starting with Rahul Gandhi 's
sensational charge of mass murder and rape.

Punia said dalit boys Anand and Ritesh had not returned home since the
Bhatta crackdown. "Their parents said they did not know about their
whereabouts... the villagers showed me burnt clothes of a missing
boy... the police indulged in atrocities on dalits in Bhatta, Parsaul
and Achhepur. It is shameful," he said.
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NCSC may summon the DM and SP for questioning and, if unsatisfied,
could file a case under the stringent anti-dalit atrocities law, a
sensitive move against the tallest SC leader in contemporary politics.

The panel's visit coincided with that of minister of state in PMO V
Narayansamy, who distributed compensation cheques to the injured in
villages as announced by the prime minister. Earlier, the National
Commission for Women too had questioned the state's claims.

The central tours formed part of Congress's attempt to mobilize
farmers against the ruling BSP, a fact which led to Mayawati slam
Congress for political opportunism with eyes on the 2012 polls.

The Congress aims to replicate Nandigram in UP where it has failed to
emerge as a serious player despite a surprise Lok Sabha show. The
anger in western region, party managers believe, can neutralize BSP's
caste networking by uniting farmers across the social divide, while
sustained focus on land acquisition can influence farmers elsewhere.

While Rahul's controversial claim of mass murder and rape by police
raised eyebrows, with negative result from forensic tests and family
accounts, Congress upped the offensive last week with Sonia Gandhi
leading the charge against Mayawati at the party's Varanasi
convention. Congress is keeping the mass murder accusation hanging as
evident from PMO ignoring any compensation for the dead.

Sources said the party focus is set to stay on Bhatta. Youth Congress
leaders have applied for details on land alongside the expressway
given to the industrialist developing it and the price paid to farmers
for land acquisition. Besides, it has asked the administration for
details of when and how Section 144 was imposed and lifted during the
turbulence, aimed at showing that it was done to hide the goings-on.

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[ZESTCaste] Nepal takes first step towards banning caste-based discrimination

http://www.radioaustralia.net.au/asiapac/stories/201105/s3228267.htm

Nepal takes first step towards banning caste-based discrimination

Updated May 26, 2011 21:53:11

The United Nations and rights advocates in Nepal have welcomed the
passing of a draft bill in parliament that outlaws caste-based
discrimination.

It's a milestone for Nepal, where for centuries the Dalit minority,
once known as 'untouchables' have faced poverty and abuse.

Reporter: Bo Hill
Speakers: Ganesh Kaliraj, vice president, Dalit Welfare Organisation,
Nepal; Rikke Nohrlind, coordinator, International Dalit Solidarity
Network, Norway; Katia Chirizzi, coordinator Anti-discrimination,
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, United Nations Office of the
High Commissioner for Human Rights, Nepal

Listen:
Windows Media http://www.abc.net.au/ra/asiapac/stories/m1993769.asx

HILL: They make up 20 per cent of the population, but Nepal's Dalit
have appalling literacy levels and lower life expectancies, they're
subject to violence, forced labour and prostitution and they're rarely
given the opportunity to legally redress these problems. It's been
centuries of prejudice against the lowest caste in the Hindu-based
social system.

KALIRAJ: Even today, also everywhere, facing violence in the temples,
in the teashop, in public places, this happens right now.

HILL: Ganesh Kaliraj, the vice president of the Dalit Welfare
Organisation in Kathmandu, is one of those traditionally known as
'impure'. His application for rental properties in the capital have
been rejected, he's been barred entry to hotels and the possibility of
he or any of his lower-caste community owning property is extremely
remote. It's been illegal to discriminate based on caste in Nepal for
years, but Ganesh Kaliraj says nothing's changed.

KALIRAJ: Communities they are not educated properly because of their
caste. They are denied the legal system. They are always thinking this
is the system, this cultural system.

HILL: Two years ago the Nepalese government presented a draft bill -
the Caste-based Discrimination and Untouchability Crime Act - a bill
that aims to bring policy and practice in Nepal in line with the
United Nations human rights conventions it's party to. The UN urged
the passing of the bill, saying it would strengthen the fight against
discrimination. Rikke Nohrlind, the coordinator of Norway-based
International Dalit Solidarity Network, says it's an incredibly big
victory for the Dalit's of Nepal.

NORHLIND: And this has been one of the most important issued pursued
by them for the last 10 years. It's one of the key cornerstones to
eradicating caste-based discrimination in the country.

HILL: A long time advocate for the elimination of caste-based
discrimination, Rikke Nohrlind says she's still shocked by the
brutality of caste prejudice - which she says effects at least 260
million people worldwide. She says in Nepal, Dalit are subject to 205
different forms of discrimination - in all spheres of life. She's just
returned from a trip to Nepal, where she consulted advocacy groups on
the new bill, and the future of the fight for Dalit recognition. She
says in Nepal there is true hope for lasting change.

NOHRLIND: There is a lot of windows of opportunity in this society of
transformation. There is political will. Of course enforcement and
implementation is always key. But with the right stakeholders being
involved and being truly committed to this, I'm truly optimistic.

HILL: But as Katia Chirizzi, from the Office of the United Nations
High Commissioner for Human Rights points out, there's a long way to
go.

CHIRIZZI: Our office has been heavily engaged since its establishment
in monitoring cases of abuses of victims of caste-based discrimination
and untouchability and one of the most recurring findings we came
across is the very low understanding on the side of victims of their
rights.... it is a crime not a social phenomenon as many want to
suggest and indicate. We are talking about a deeply rooted form of
discrimination. We're looking at a process that would require time.

HILL: Are you talking years or generations?

CHIRIZZI: Well we will all help that it's years and not generations
but, again, the introduction of such an important piece of legislation
will play an important role in this process.

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[ZESTCaste] NCP wants Mumbai station named after Ambedkar

http://www.sify.com/news/ncp-wants-mumbai-station-named-after-ambedkar-news-national-lf4qaleabib.html

IANS
NCP wants Mumbai station named after Ambedkar
2011-05-30 16:00:00

Mumbai, May 30 (IANS) The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which is
part of Maharashtra's ruling Congress-led coalition, wants the city's
important Dadar railway junction to be renamed 'Chaiya Bhoomi' in
memory of late Dalit icon B.R. Ambedkar, a party official said here
Monday.

The proposal is likely to be taken up as a resolution at the NCP's
convention on Rights of Backward Class People scheduled June 10 as
part of the party's 11th anniversary celebrations here, the official
said.

Chaitya Bhoomi, barely two kilometers from Dadar railway station, is
the place where Ambedkar was cremated Dec 6, 1956.

Later, converted into a national monument, lakhs of Dalits from all
over the country converge to pay homage to Ambedkar, the architect of
India's constitution, on his death anniversary.

Reacting to the NCP's plans, Republican Party of India (RPI) leader
Ramdas Athawale said that his party had made this proposal long ago.

'They have no other issues for the Dalits in Mumbai. They did nothing
nothing for the Dalits for the past 64 years, so now they talk of
renaming Dadar station,' Athawale told reporters.

Shiv Sena leader Gajanan Kirtikar said that the party would not oppose
the move to rename Dadar as Chaitya Bhoomi if such a proposal comes
up.

The NCP's move is being viewed as an effort to counter the upcoming
alliance of Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party-Republican Party of India
which was announced recently and will be formalized by October.

Shaken by the prospects of losing a large chunk of crucial Dalit votes
during next year's elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation
and other major civic bodies, the NCP has now come up with the idea of
renaming Dadar station.

However, on the record, top NCP leaders like Praful Patel have said
that RPI joining the opposition combine would not affect its prospects
in any manner.

In 1996-97, the then ruling Shiv Sena-BJP government had proposed
renaming of Dadar station but did not send a formal proposal to the
central government and the matter was left hanging.

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[ZESTCaste] Dalit boy thrashed for 'defiling' TN temple

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-05-29/coimbatore/29596571_1_dalit-boy-temple-priest-stringent-law

Dalit boy thrashed for 'defiling' TN temple
Binoy Valsan, May 29, 2011, 03.14pm IST

COIMBATORE: In a shocking instance of the continuing practice of
untouchability, a 17-year-old dalit boy, who entered the sanctum
sanctorum of a temple, was allegedly thrashed and abused by a Brahmin
priest and his son in Mettupalayam, Coimbatore district, on Friday.

K Vinith had gone to the temple with his sister K Sruthi, 15, an hour
before her Class X results were declared on Friday. He entered the
sanctum sanctorum, took 'vibhuti' (holy ash) kept on a plate and
smeared it on his sister's forehead. The priest and his son, who were
not in the sanctum sanctorum, returned then and allegedly slapped him
repeatedly.

The duo have been arrested on charges of abuse and causing voluntary
hurt under sections of the Indian Penal Code. However, the police are
yet to invoke the sections under the anti-untouchability law (The
Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act) against
them.

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[ZESTCaste] NCSC notice to UP govt over Jat killings

http://www.hindustantimes.com/NCSC-notice-to-UP-govt-over-Jat-killings/Article1-703452.aspx

NCSC notice to UP govt over Jat killings
Vikas Pathak, Hindustan Times
New Delhi, May 29, 2011

National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) Chairman PL Punia has
sent a notice to the Mayawati government over the killing of three
Jats in Bhatta-Parsaul, in recent clashes between villagers and
police, also asking about the status of the compensation due to their
families. Ironically,
Jats are a dominant caste in the region and are OBCs, not Dalits, in the state.

However, what has made Punia decide to send notice is that Article 338
(10) of the constitution — Article 338 as a whole deals with the NCSC
—expressly states: "In this article, reference to the Scheduled Castes
shall be construed as including references to… other backward
classes…and also to the Anglo Indian community".

"We have sent notice to UP under Article 338(10), informing them of
the charges that three OBC youth were killed in police firing, and
seeking to know from them what compensation they have given to the
aggrieved families as of now?" Punia told HT.

Jats were included in the UP state OBC list in the year 2000, but are
not part of the central OBC list yet. Punia however said, "This
incident took place in UP and was thus an atrocity against OBCs, on
which the NCSC is constitutionally empowered to take cognizance."

This attack from the NCSC chief — a Congress MP and an
aide-turned-arch-rival of UP CM Mayawati — comes close on the heels of
the NCSC's summoning of the district magistrate and superintendent of
police of Gautam Buddha Nagar over atrocities on Dalits in
Bhatta-Parsaul.

Politically, this is being seen as part of the ongoing
Congress-Mayawati row after Rahul Gandhi visited the twin villages
that became the site of a recent land acquisition controversy.

Sociologically, the notice may seem an anomaly to some, as a
constitutional commission mandated to safeguard the interests of
Dalits — at the bottom of the social pyramid — has sent notice to a
Dalit CM about the killing of members of a locally dominant caste.

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[ZESTCaste] Fwd: Bharat me Jatiwad Sabse Bara Atankwad... [1 Attachment]

[Attachment(s) from Siddhartha Kumar included below]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Bhartiya Samanvaya Sangthan Lakshay <lakshay.jan1999@gmail.com>
Date: Sat, May 28, 2011 at 2:26 PM
Subject: Bharat me Jatiwad Sabse Bara Atankwad...

Bharat me Jatiwad Sabse Bara Atankwad...
Dear Brothers/Sisters - Jai Bhim
One day Cadre Camp by Lakshay at 10 AM, on 22 May 2011..
Venue : Valmiki Chaupal, village Sikri, Faridabad Haryana
Chief Orator: Mr RB Gautam, National Commander - Lakshay
You are cordially invited.
Regards

KP Gautam (Cordinator - Faridabad & Palwal district)
09717088460

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Attachment(s) from Siddhartha Kumar

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