A tragic case of caste violence, Dalit youth dies after fighting for life for 6 days; family demands justice and compensation
Gujarat – A Dalit youth was brutally beaten up in Amreli district for allegedly addressing a teenager from another caste as “son”. Six days after the incident, the youth died in Bhavnagar Civil Hospital on Thursday.
The deceased has been identified as Nilesh Rathod (village – Jarkiya). The police have so far arrested eight accused in the case and detained a minor, while the search for two accused is on.
On Friday, Congress MLA Jignesh Mevani staged a protest with the family of the deceased and demanded justice. In a statement released on Facebook, Mevani said:
“Nilesh Rathore… passed away a few days ago after being brutally beaten up by casteist elements for merely calling him ‘son’. We demand that the family of the deceased and others affected in the attack be given 5 acres of agricultural land or a government job each, the case be investigated by a senior officer and the trial be held in a fast-track court to set an example.”
Rathore’s family has announced that they will not accept the body until their demands are met.
What happened?
According to the FIR lodged by Lalji Mansukh Chauhan (28), one of the victims, on May 16, he, Rathore and their other companions were at a bhajiya (pakoda) stall on the Amreli-Sawarkundla road. Rathore had gone to buy snacks from a nearby shop.
Chauhan said in the FIR that Rathore returned in a panic and said that the shop owner tried to hit him with an iron ladle because Rathore had asked his minor son, addressing him as “son”, if he needed help in reaching a packet of snacks hanging at a height.
When Chauhan reached the shop to look into the matter, the shop owner Chhotha Khoda Bharwad attacked him with a stick. Later, a man named Vijay Anand Tota also attacked both Rathore and Chauhan. The FIR said that bhajiya stall owner Jaga Dudhat rescued the two.
Later, Rathore’s uncle Suresh Wala reached the shop to talk, but by then Bharwad had called some more men who attacked them with sticks and sickles and hurled caste-related slurs.
According to the complaint, the victims tried to flee from the spot, but the attackers followed and kept attacking them, taunting them for being from a “lower caste”. Finally, the attackers stopped after an elderly man intervened.
Legal action
The FIR lodged at Amreli rural police station first named four accused — Bharwad, Tota, Bhavesh Mundhwa and Jatin Mundhwa. They were booked under several sections of the Indian Penal Code (BNS), including Section 118(1) – causing grievous hurt, Section 115(2) – voluntarily causing hurt, Section 189 – unlawful assembly, Section 191 – rioting, Section 131 – assault or criminal force, Section 352 – intentional insult for breach of peace, Section 3(5) – responsibility for collective offence.
A case was also registered under sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Gujarat Police Act.
The police added attempt to murder (Section 109) when Rathore’s condition deteriorated, and murder (Section 103) after his death.
Arrests so far
The Indian Express quoted Amreli Superintendent of Police Sanjay Kharat as saying that a total of 11 people were involved in the incident, of which 9 have been arrested. Apart from the initial four, the other accused arrested are: Kathad Arjan Mundhwa, Deva Sanga Mundhwa, Duda Boga Mundhwa and Ravi Duda Mundhwa. Police teams are searching for two other absconding accused.
Courtesy : Rajan Chaudhary, Hindi News