DALIT ATROCITIES - 2005 - Indian Social Institute

Sena are some of the gangs. The gangs have fiery logos featuring cobras, tigers and guns.
(Asian Age 14/9/05)
Dalit’s daughter is hostage (2)
New Delhi, Sept. 13: Sixty-year-old Moolchand, a resident of Ballabgarh in Haryana, has lost faith
in the police. Landlords of a nearby village have kept his 16-year-old daughter hostage for the last
three months. Whenever Moolchand approaches the police, the policemen start beating him up
and sometimes senior officials make derogatory remarks since he is a dalit, he says. Talking to
this correspondent, Moolchand said, "There is nobody in the village who will help me, simply
because I am a dalit. I know that my daughter is in the custody of landlords. Even the local police
knows that. When the landlords kidnapped my daughter, I lodged a complaint with the local police
but no action was taken against the landlords." "After lodging several complaints, I requested
police officials several times to rescue my daughter. But now the policemen have started abusing
me. Sometimes they beat me and pass derogatory remarks against me and my community. Now
with the help of the local police, the landlords have threatened me with dire consequences. I am
worried about my wife Sheila and four other children. The landlords sometimes threaten my
family in my absence. I don’t know what to do," said Moolchand. He further said, "I am a very
poor man. It’s really difficult for me to fight with the landlords of the village. The police has also
become anti-dalit in the village. Last time when I visited the police station, one of the senior
officials said, ‘What will you do with your daughter, she is now pregnant?’" (Asian Age 14/9/05)
Mangal blanks out dalit’s role in history’ (2)
Lucknow, Sept. 13: Trouble for Ketan Mehta’s magnum opus Mangal Pandey — The Rising
continues to brew in Uttar Pradesh. After the court case slapped on the film director and crew by
Mangal Pandey’s descendants in Ballia for allegedly showing the war hero in a poor light, it is
now a UP-based dalit organisation called Swayam Sudhar Samiti that is gunning for the
filmmakers. The dalits are enraged over the fact that the filmmakes make no mention of Matadin,
a dalit, who had first informed Mangal Pandey that the cartridges were being greased with animal
fat and it was this that led to the 1857 war of Independence. The film shows a dalit called
Nainsukh informing Mangal Pandey of the use of animal fat in cartridges that were given to Indian
soldiers for use. However, there is no mention of Matadin. According to Mr Dev Kumar, convener
of the Swayam Sudhar Samiti, it is an established fact that it was a dalit — and not a Brahmin —
who first ignited the spark of revolt against the British rule. The Swayam Sudhar Samiti has
collected all relevant documents that detail Matadin’s role in inspiring Mangal Pandey to revolt
against the British and is now preparing to file public interest litigation against the filmmakers,
demanding an unconditional apology for blanking out Matadin’s role in the first war of
Independence. (Asian Age 14/9/05)
Dreaded criminal turns Dalit activist (2)
New Delhi : Shocking! But true. A dreaded criminal, Jag Mohan Singh, arrested by the Delhi
Police crime branch for his involvement in more than 10 heinous crimes, including a murder and
murderous attempts on three businessmen, is the same person who was rousing rabble at the
Ramlila Ground in Delhi on September 5. "Fighting for the civil liberties and rights of Dalits" after
the Gohana incident, he led from the front in cursing the top leaders of the Congress. Mohar
Singh alias Jagmohan Singh is a senior leader in the Akhil Bharatiya Balmiki Samaj. Talking to
The Pioneer on September 5, he said that the Dalit community wants the dismissal of the Hooda
Government. Himself named in the 'most wanted' list of Delhi Police, Jagmohan demanded a CBI
probe into the Gohana arson. In the conversation, he expressed an acute sympathy towards the
Balmiki youths who killed the Jat boy Baljit Singh in Gohana. He backed the Balmiki community
by terming the incident in Gohana as anti-Dalit and blamed the entire upper caste community and
Haryana Government for their demeaning behaviour towards the Dalits. He demanded from the
Haryana Government to double the interim relief amount from Rs 50,000 to Rs one lakh to each
to the affected families. On Tuesday, anti-auto theft squad and anti-robbery cell of Delhi Police
received an information about this alleged extortionist coming in a Toyota Qualis, which was
involved in a criminal case. He was nabbed near Hanuman Mandir, Connaught Place. The police
also recovered the car, one pistol and four live cartridges from him. Police are contemplating a