DALIT ATROCITIES - 2005 - Indian Social Institute

started by the previous Congress Government for the benefit of Dalits have been scrapped, she
pointed out. While the BJP had promised in its election manifesto that Dalits would get proper
drinking water supply, concrete houses and sanitation facilities, the `anti-Dalit Government' was
now engaged in uprooting the hapless slum-dwellers. The State Government was also busy
demolishing the system that had been put in place by the previous Congress Government for
educating the Scheduled Castes, she said adding "all this is an attempt to patronize their own
Shishu Mandirs". The BJP has also failed to provide either employment or two hectares of
unencumbered land to every Scheduled Caste family under the farm labourer category, she
alleged. (The Hindu 1/10/05)
Dalit accuses Petronet of sabotaging appointment (2)
New Delhi, Oct. 1: The issue of caste and coterie, the bane of Indian bureaucracy has allegedly
struck in the appointment of CEO in private company Petronet LNG Limited (PLL). Director
projects of Gail Prabhakar Rao, a dalit candidate for the post, has moved the court, alleging that
gail head Prashanto Bannerjee has sabotaged his chance. Mr Rao has moved the Delhi high
court seeking a stay on the appointment of the PLL CEO. The court has issued notices to the
ministry of petroleum and natural gas, the scheduled caste commission, PLL, as well as Gail
CMD Prashanto Bannerjee. On September 1, Mr Pro-sad Dasgupta was appointed to the post by
the board of directors of PLL. Mr Rao has alleged that he had applied for the post and routed his
application through the proper channel, that of CMD Gail, which Mr Bannerjee had refused to
forward but instead did it for another applicant from Gail. Mr Rao has also insinuated that Mr
Bannerjee had participated in the selection process and canvassed against him, a charge which
has been contested by Mr Bannerjee. An explanation has been sought by the SC commission.
Mr Bannerjee has put forward 12 justifications to shield the charge that he tried to jeopardise Mr
Rao’s career. However, the ministry has not endorsed any of these. It has said that Mr Rao
deserves a sympathetic hearing on the grounds of being a dalit. (Asian Age 2/10/05)
BJP calls to end atrocities on Dalits (2)
New Delhi : Delhi Pradesh BJP president Dr Harsh Vardhan has urged the chief ministers of Uttar
Pradesh and Orissa to curb the atrocities being inflicted upon the barber community and other
Dalit communities in the two states. Dr Vardhan has written to Mulayam Singh Yadav and
Naveen Patnaik chief ministers of Uttar Pradesh and Orissa respectively in this context.
Addressing the demonstrators at Jantar Mantar on Tuesday, the city BJP president requested
both the chief ministers to punish the guilty persons. In Orissa, atrocities ranging from washing
the feet of the upper class to cleaning their leftovers are being commited against the Dalits and
the barber community. Expressing dismay over the atrocities on Dalit communities in various
parts of the country, Dr Vardhan said: "We should do everything possible to ensure the people
from the weaker sections of the society are not harassed at all." (Pioneer 5/10/05)
Dalit Sarpanch accuses cops of rape in Rajasthan (2)
JAIPUR: A Dalit woman sarpanch in Jhalawar district of Rajasthan has accused the station house
officer of the Gangdhar police station, an assistant sub-inspector and two local functionaries of
the Bharatiya Janata Party of raping her on September 22 night. No case has been registered on
her complaint so far even after her appeals to the Collector and the Superintendent of Police, she
charged. The victim, Sarpanch of Rojhana village, who appeared before media persons along
with her husband Puralal Doli and her two children in the Pradesh Congress Committee office on
Wednesday, said she had gone to the Gangdhar police station in Dag panchayat samiti to
complain against the corporal punishment meted out to the students of local school by two
teachers. She considered filing a case against the "torture" of students after her efforts to
negotiate the issue between the teachers and parents of children failed, she said. The woman
sarpanch, who belongs to the Congress, mentioned the names of Fateh Singh Chouhan, SHO,
Ganga Ram, ASI and two BJP leaders as the perpetratorsof the atrocity against her. According to
her, when she went to the police station the police personnel presented there first abused her
calling her caste names. "We will take out your sarpanch-ship today," the men reportedly said
after a round of beating and prior to the alleged rape inside the police station itself. She was
pushed out of the police station thereafter. No medical examination of the victim could be done so