Meerut Dalit protest: Non-bailable charges against protesters dropped
Meerut: Days after UP CM Yogi Adityanath met the family of murdered Dalit student Lalita Gautam, 20, in Ghaziabad on Saturday, police have now dropped serious, non-bailable charges against protesters arrested during the July 8 demonstrations in Meerut.The action came after several meetings between UP govt representatives and the family, which has been demanding justice for the dead student. Last week, the state govt sprang into action to contain the fallout of growing Dalit protests in the district by deputing Asim Arun, minister in charge of Meerut and former IPS officer and prominent Dalit face himself in the BJP, to “personally intervene” in the case. Advocate Anil Pradhan, representing the eight accused, said that it was the court that intervened directly. “The court of additional chief judicial magistrate found the charges frivolous and ordered their withdrawal from the FIR,” Pradhan said. Pradhan said legal steps are underway to hold the law enforcement officers accountable, stating his team is preparing a formal application to press charges against SSP Avinash Pandey “for thrashing protesters and physically assaulting a defense lawyer inside a police van”. A video of the SSP’s action drew condemnation across the political spectrum. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and BSP chief Mayawati criticised the administration’s high-handedness. The authorities had then also barred prominent Dalit leaders, including Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad, from entering the city. Gautam, a final-year BA student, was allegedly abducted and murdered on May 15, and her body was recovered from a sugarcane field two days later. Police subsequently arrested her acquaintance, Ankush Kumar, alleging he murdered her after she refused a marriage proposal to protect her family’s honor. His brother, Ankit, and an associate, Adesh, were also named in that case. Outrage over the murder boiled over on July 8 when demonstrators blocked the Meerut Collectorate gate for nearly three hours, demanding Ankit’s immediate arrest. Clashes erupted after police launched a baton charge. Authorities claimed 11 police personnel were injured in the melee. Police then booked 63 protesters—13 named and 50 unidentified—under various BNS sections, including 109 (attempt to murder), which provides over seven years of imprisonment. Under Supreme Court guidelines, automatic arrests are generally prohibited for offenses carrying sentences of seven years or less—making the addition of severe non-bailable charges pivotal to keeping the protesters detained. Yogi had earlier directed that strict legal action be taken against every person involved in the crime and ordered action against any officer or personnel found negligent. Adityanath announced financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh from the CM’s discretionary fund, and directed officials to provide a house for the victim’s father and another eligible family member under the Mukhayamantri Awas Yojana. The CM also instructed officials to extend benefits under all eligible govt welfare schemes to the family. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Karnataka to fill SC/ST backlog vacancies, says Dy CM Parameshwara
On some DSS leaders’ statements that the Dalit community is not benefiting from the five guarantee schemes, Dr Parameshwara said people from the community who are not receiving the benefits of the guarantees will be identified soon. BENGALURU: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara, who also holds the revenue portfolio, on Tuesday promised a delegation of Dalits that steps will be taken to fill backlog vacancies reserved for the SCs and STs in universities and other government departments soon. “Our government will fill 72,000 vacant posts in various departments. The SCs and STs will be recruited as per reservation. In addition, several posts reserved for various categories remain vacant. These backlog vacancies, including those in universities and some major departments, will be filled. The matter will be discussed with the chief minister,” he told reporters after meeting the delegation. Stating that the PTCL Act has been amended, Dr Parameshwara said provision D has been removed to facilitate transfer of land granted to Dalits to others. However, there are concerns that its implementation has been delayed. “I assured the delegation that the government will take an appropriate decision in this regard soon,” he added. On some DSS leaders’ statement that the Dalit community is not benefiting from the five guarantee schemes, Dr Parameshwara said people from the community, who are not receiving the benefits of the guarantees, will be identified soon. Steps will be taken to reach the benefits to them. On the demand to increase the post-matric scholarship of Rs 1,800 per student, he said it should be hiked to Rs 3,000. He promised that it will be revised after talks with the CM. This will be included in the next budget. Dr Parameshwara said the fees of SC/ST students studying abroad will be paid by the government. Neelavva Ningavva Harijan, member of the Indian squad that won the World Cup cricket for persons with disabilities last year, was living in a shed. The government provided her Rs 5 lakh last year. She will soon be allotted a residential site, he added. Dalit leaders Mavalli Shankar, Prof Indira Krishnappa, M Venkataswamy, Sridhar Kaliveera and Subbu Holeyar, Revenue Additional Chief Secretary Rajendra Kumar Kataria, Revenue Commissioner Meena Nagaraj, and Social Welfare Principal Secretary Mohan Raj were present. Courtesy : TNIE Note: This news is originally published on https:/thenewindianexpress.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
CM Yogi meets Lalita Gautam’s family, announces financial and other assistance
During his meeting with the victim’s family in Ghaziabad, CM Yogi assured financial assistance and a house each for the deceased’s father and uncle under the Chief Minister’s Housing Scheme. He also directed the family to receive priority benefits under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, ration cards, and other eligible welfare schemes. The Chief Minister also assured the family of strictest legal action against the culprits. Ghaziabad. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath met with the family of Lalita Gautam, a Dalit student from Meerut, at the PWD Guest House in Ghaziabad on Saturday, expressing his condolences and offering condolences. The Chief Minister announced immediate financial assistance of ₹5 lakh from the Chief Minister’s Discretionary Fund. During his meeting with the victim’s family in Ghaziabad, CM Yogi assured financial assistance and a house each for the deceased’s father and uncle under the Chief Minister’s Housing Scheme. CM Yogi has also directed that the family be given priority access to the benefits of the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, ration cards, and other eligible welfare schemes. Furthermore, the Chief Minister has assured the family of strict legal action against the culprits. After meeting the Chief Minister, the deceased’s father, Ved Prakash, and brother, Prashant, expressed confidence in receiving justice. They said that the Chief Minister listened to their plight with utmost patience and affection and assured them that not a single culprit involved in this heinous crime will be spared. They said that the meeting with the Chief Minister further strengthened the family’s confidence in receiving justice. Senior administrative and police officials, including Social Welfare Minister and Meerut District In-charge Minister Asim Arun, were present on the occasion. After the victims met with the Chief Minister and received financial and other support, the Samajwadi Party has now backtracked on this issue. The SP had been raising the issue repeatedly, and Akhilesh Yadav even met with the victim’s family in Lucknow. However, after CM Yogi’s meeting with the victim’s family and the family’s expression of satisfaction, there is hope that the politicizing of this matter will end. Courtesy: Hindi News
CasteWhy Should Readers Across the World Care About Dalit Literature?
This article is a lightly edited version of the introduction to Touchable/Untouchable: Dalit Literature from India in Translation, edited by K. Satyanarayana and S. Shankar. Touchable/Untouchable is a special issue of the journal Mānoa: A Pacific Journal of International Writing, and also a standalone volume published by University of Hawai`i Press. The volume can be accessed on Project Muse here and ordered here. The journal can be subscribed to here. Why should readers across the world care about Dalit literature? For one thing, contemporary Dalit literature is among the most interesting, the most vibrant, of literary enterprises currently underway in India. Contemporary Dalit literature has borne gripping witness to the centuries-old atrocious institution of exclusion and oppression known as caste – at the bottom of which Dalits are located as the most excluded – and broken invigorating new literary ground. For these reasons alone, the value of reading Dalit literature should be evident. Dalit literature deserves a global audience, which it has begun to receive in recent years. What does it mean to say Dalit works constitute a literature of witnessing? Not surprisingly – and here one might draw comparisons to slave narratives in the African American tradition – many early works of the contemporary boom in Dalit literature are testimonies, autobiographies and memoirs. These works can certainly be read as testifying to the oppressive conditions under which Dalits and other “lower castes” live. As Omprakash Valmiki, celebrated Dalit author of the Hindi-language Joothan, declared in the preface to his autobiography: “After a long period of procrastination, I started to write. Once again, I had to relive all those miseries, torments, neglects, admonitions. I suffered a deep mental anguish while writing this book. How terribly painful was this unraveling of my self, layer upon layer”. Excerpts from Tulsiram’s Hindi autobiography Murdaihya as well as Pradnya Daya Pawar’s poem, a kind of biography-in-verse of a famous Dalit folk singer, both of which appear in Touchable/Untouchable, provide fine examples of this kind of witnessing. On the other hand, literary critics have wondered whether the view of Dalit works as a literature of witnessing diminishes their aesthetic value. These critics have called their colleagues to account for having a unidimensional approach to Dalit literature – for essentially shoehorning Dalit works into a “witnessing” function. Because of the dangers of such shoehorning, it is important to recognise the many ways in which the literature produced by Dalits in the last 50 years challenges established literary conventions. For example, many Dalit writers eschew a high literary style, deliberately adopting in its place a vernacular/spoken one. The veteran Tamil writer Bama, an influence on the poet Sukirtharani, included in Touchable/Untouchable, is a case in point. Translator Lakshmi Holmstrom notes of her: “Bama is doing something completely new in using the demotic and the colloquial regularly…. She uses a Dalit style of language which overturns the decorum and aesthetics of received upper-class, upper-caste Tamil”. Linguistically as well as formally, Dalit writers challenge contemporary Indian literature, as Baburao Bagul’s essay in Touchable/Untouchable ruminating on the aesthetics of Dalit literature suggests. In the end, both when it bears witness and when it innovates, Dalit literature presents a human story of struggle as well as triumph in startlingly powerful ways. This struggle is vividly brought out in the excerpts included in Touchable/Untouchable from Bojja Tharakam’s Telugu novel narrating the lives of a family of Dalit bonded labourers across generations. Of course, the same human story of struggle is found in different ways in all the pieces included. These human stories are also deeply Indian, as much Indian as the more celebrated Indian writing in English, largely “upper caste,” well known to global readers. The picture of India in Dalit literature may very well be familiar to readers in some respects. In others, to readers not familiar with Dalit literature, it will certainly be startling, evocative, shocking, moving, and more. Origins of the term The term “Dalit literature” was coined in the first Dalit Literary Conference held in Mumbai (then Bombay) in 1958. Marathi Dalit writers created history by publishing several collections of poetry, short stories and autobiographical narratives and critical essays in the 1960s and 1970s. Poisoned Bread, a classic anthology of these writings in English translation, was published in 1992. Marathi Dalit literature was widely translated into several Indian languages and served as an inspiration to Dalit writers in other Indian languages. Contemporary Dalit literature emerged as a powerful literary movement in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam from the 1970s to the 1990s (see No Alphabet in Sight and Steel Nibs, co-edited by K. Satyanarayana). It became a pan Indian phenomenon with the rise of Dalit literatures in Hindi, Bengali and other Indian languages after the 1990s. Dalit literature in English translation acquired national and global visibility with the publication of autobiographies, novels, poetry and essays by mainstream publishers. Dalit literature is not simply a literary trend but a literary movement for social change. It describes and analyses Dalit life worlds and struggles based on first-hand lived experience. The distinctive term “Dalit” (literally “crushed down” or “broken”) is both identity and perspective. The Dalit Panthers, a group of insurgent intellectuals, popularized “Dalit” as a term to claim a dignified identity for “untouchables,” while rejecting demeaning caste/jati names. They used the term to broadly refer to “untouchable” caste groups, Adivasis (aka “tribals”), and other minorities. In the course of history, “Dalit” became synonymous with the “untouchable” (also known as “scheduled caste”) groups. Dalit critics theorised “Dalit” as a collective identity based on self-respect and human dignity. Dalit is a revolutionary term born out of anti-caste struggles and has shaped a Dalit perspective. In this sense, Dalit literature invents a canon and a normative Dalit character, and inaugurates a shift from the old understanding of caste as a feudal relic to a contemporary form of power. It contests the view that untouchability is a cultural practice based on religious notions of “purity” and “impurity” and suggests that untouchability is a
Woman who went to worship at temple accused of assault: Case filed under various sections including SC/ST Act
A Dalit woman who went to worship at a temple in Harchandpur village, under the Subeha police station area of Barabanki district, has accused some villagers of assaulting her and using casteist slurs. The woman’s son was also allegedly assaulted. Based on the victim’s complaint, police have registered a case under various sections including the SC/ST Act and have begun an investigation. Harchandpur resident Sant Dulari Rawat, wife of Raj Bahadur Rawat, stated in her complaint to the police that the incident occurred on July 19, 2026, at around 9 a.m. She had gone to worship at a temple near her home. It is alleged that Raghav Ram Mishra, Rajit Ram Mishra, Avadharam Mishra, Sahaj Ram Mishra (sons of Ram Shankar Mishra), and Mansha Devi Mishra, daughter of Ram Shankar Mishra, arrived at the scene and attempted to remove Sant Dulari’s worship materials kept near the temple. According to the victim, when she protested, the accused abused her, used casteist slurs, and began assaulting her. Hearing the commotion, her son, Diwakar, rushed to her rescue, but the accused assaulted him as well. Both the woman and her son are reported to have sustained injuries in the incident. The woman also stated that during the assault, her mangalsutra, weighing approximately two tolas, fell somewhere and was not found despite extensive searching. Based on the victim’s complaint, the police have registered a case under the SC/ST Act and other relevant sections. Inspector-in-Charge Bechu Singh stated that a case has been registered and the matter is being investigated. Further legal action will be taken based on the facts that emerge from the investigation. Idrish | Haidergarh Courtesy: Hindi News
Kerala Crime Branch Arrests Absconding Dental College Professor From Karnataka In Student’s Death Case
Police said the accused avoided using mobile phones and frequently changed locations across different states before he was finally tracked down in Kodagu. Kannur: The Kerala Crime Branch has arrested the absconding prime accused in the death case of first-year BDS student R L Nithinraj of Anjarakandy Dental College in Kannur district in Kerala. Dr M K Ram, a faculty member of the college, was taken into custody from a hideout in Kodagu, Karnataka, after being on the run for several months. The accused was apprehended late on Sunday and brought to Kannur on Monday, where he is being interrogated by the Crime Branch. Dr Ram’s anticipatory bail plea was rejected by the Supreme Court on July 13. Earlier, the Kerala High Court had also dismissed his bail application on June 19. Following the high court order, the Crime Branch had attempted to arrest him in Andhra Pradesh, but he allegedly managed to evade the police before approaching the apex court. After the Supreme Court refused him anticipatory bail, a special team led by Crime Branch Inspector Sreejith Koderi intensified the search. Investigators said the accused avoided using mobile phones and frequently changed locations across different states before he was finally tracked down in Kodagu. Reacting to the arrest, Nithinraj’s father Y Rajan, a daily wager, said the family welcomed the development but maintained that complete justice would be achieved only after all those allegedly responsible were brought to book. “We will get justice only when every accused in the case is arrested and punished,” Rajan told reporters. Nithinraj, a resident of Aryanad in Thiruvananthapuram district, died by suicide after jumping from the medical college building on April 10. His family alleged that the Dalit student had been subjected to sustained harassment by faculty members over his caste and skin colour. Fellow students also alleged that he faced repeated body shaming and mental harassment. Based on the complaint, police registered a case against Dr Ram and others under charges including abetment of suicide and provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Following protests by students, the college management dismissed Dr Ram from service. The investigation is now being conducted by a special Crime Branch team under the supervision of State Crime Branch SP K V Venugopal. While Crime Branch DySP Sudheer Kallan is probing the circumstances leading to Nithinraj’s death, DySP Jeevan George is investigating another angle involving alleged harassment by online loan recovery agents. According to investigators, Nithinraj had borrowed money through a loan app to meet educational expenses and fund his mother’s medical treatment. When he defaulted on repayments, recovery agents allegedly threatened him and contacted his teachers and others, causing severe mental distress. The case was initially investigated by the local police before being transferred to a special investigation team headed by the City Police Commissioner. Following objections raised by the family over the probe, the investigation was later handed over to the Crime Branch. Officials said the custodial interrogation of Dr Ram is expected to provide further clarity on the circumstances that led to the student’s death. Courtesy : ETV Bharat Note: This news is originally published on https:/etvbharat.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Dalit Christian teacher buried after 3-day standoff over cemetery rights
Trichy: The body of an 89-year-old retired Dalit Christian teacher was laid to rest in a common cemetery near Thuraiyur on Sunday, three days after his death, after officials brokered a settlement between rival groups locked in a dispute over burial rights. A Raju, a retired government schoolteacher from Kottapalayam village, died of age-related ailments on July 17. His family sought to bury him in the common cemetery attached to St Mary Magdalene Church, but members of other Christian communities objected, claiming that dalit Christians should use a separate cemetery affiliated with St Sebastian’s Church. The dispute is rooted in a long-standing row over burial rights. In 2014, Raju and four others moved the Thuraiyur civil court seeking equal access to the common cemetery for Scheduled Caste Christians. In 2024, the court ruled that the St Mary Magdalene Church cemetery is open to all Christians, irrespective of caste. Despite the court order, opposition from non-dalit Christian groups delayed the burial, forcing Raju’s family to keep his body at home for three days. The standoff heightened tensions in the village, prompting police deployment. Sub-collector Sushree Suvangi Khuntia, additional superintendent of police R Dhanarasu and DSP N Muthumar held marathon talks with representatives of both sides. After nearly nine hours of negotiations at the Musiri sub-collector‘s office, an agreement was reached late on Sunday, following which Raju’s body was buried in the common cemetery around 1am on Monday. Courtesy : TOI Note: This news is originally published on https:/timesofindia.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
Dalit man laid to rest after 3-day standoff over cemetery rights in TN
Dispute arose after A Raju, a retired government school teacher and Dalit Christian, died of age-related illness on July 17. His family sought to bury him in the common cemetery, citing the civil court decree. TIRUCHY: A Dalit Christian, whose body remained at his residence for three days allegedly over a dispute on burial rights at a common cemetery in Kottapalayam near Thuraiyur, was laid to rest in the early hours of Monday after district officials brokered a peace agreement between representatives of Dalit Christian and non-Dalit Christian communities. The burial was carried out with police protection following the peace meeting chaired by Musiri Sub-Collector Sushree Suvangi Khuntia. According to officials, Dalit Christians are allowed to use the village’s 0.55-acre common cemetery in line with a 2024 decree of the Thuraiyur District Munsif Court. The minutes of the Sunday meeting said both communities should continue to abide by the court’s order. Officials also decided the funeral mass should be conducted at St Sebastian’s Church, while the burial would take place under the supervision of the parish priest. Dispute arose after A Raju, a retired government school teacher and Dalit Christian, died of age-related illness on July 17. His family sought to bury him in the common cemetery, citing the civil court decree. However, non-Dalit Christians opposed the move, contending that Dalit Christians already had a separate burial ground, leaving the body at the family’s residence for three days. Revenue and police officials held talks with both communities for nearly five hours on Sunday, but failed to break the deadlock. Fresh negotiations on Monday resulted in an agreement, paving the way for the burial. J Doss Prakash, a resident of Kottapalayam, said Dalit Christians had fought for several decades to secure equal burial rights in the common cemetery, which is over 100 years old. He alleged that Dalit Christians were denied access because of caste-based discrimination and said Monday’s burial was carried out by enforcing the civil court’s order. “Several members of the non-Dalit Christian community also stood with us and extended their support during the peace talks. It is only a few groups that continue to raise objections and create divisions within the village,” he said. Pearson Lenekar SR Courtesy : TNIE Note: This news is originally published on https:/thenewindianexpress.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights
How did the opposition’s plan fail? A single move by Asim Arun quelled the Meerut Dalit student Lalita Gautam murder case.
The BJP quelled the Meerut Dalit student murder case as quickly as the opposition had raised it. Minister Asim Arun was behind this thorough planning. The opposition was constantly cornering the government The victim’s family met with CM Yogi Asim Arun kept an eye on the entire case Shadab Rizvi, Meerut: The atmosphere created by the opposition against the government and police regarding the murder of Lalita, a Dalit student in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, has cooled just as quickly. Lalita’s family’s anger has suddenly subsided. This was made possible by the strategy of Asim Arun, a former bureaucrat and minister to the UP CM. Asim Arun’s sympathy maneuver, arranging a meeting with the CM and securing help, defeated all the opposition politicians who had appeared aggressive on the issue. A Look at the Opposition’s Strategy The family of Lalita Gautam, the student, wanted strict action against the murderer. The family was upset with the delay in arresting the accused. The police’s handling of the situation had angered the district police as well as the government. Dalit leaders from opposition parties and organizations called a Mahapanchayat to address Lalita’s family’s anguish. Everyone expressed their displeasure with the government and police. The situation escalated to a confrontation. Police and protesters clashed. FIRs were filed, and arrests were made. The issue became a topic of discussion across the country. BSP chief Mayawati, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, AAP leader Sanjay Singh, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav, Azad Samaj Party President Chandrashekhar, and numerous other leaders attacked the government and police. Leaders from several parties, including Chandrashekhar Azad and Congress state in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam, attempted to visit the village and meet the victim’s family. SP President Akhilesh Yadav met the victim’s family in Delhi and provided assistance of two lakh rupees. This move and assistance from the opposition unnerved the ruling BJP. Aseem made his move and made things easier. Aseem Arun, Minister of Independent Charge in the UP government, is also the Minister in charge of Meerut. He is pursuing politics after resigning from the post of ADG in the police department. His father, Shriram Arun, was the former DGP of Uttar Pradesh. At the time when Meerut was in turmoil over the Lalita incident, with people demanding the summoning of the minister in charge, Minister Aseem Arun was constantly having three BJP leaders send every media report on the incident to Lucknow. He is working on a strategy to ensure that the anti-Dalit atmosphere does not harm the BJP. According to a BJP leader close to Aseem Arun, the minister had asked everyone not to issue statements, to remain calm, and to monitor every activity. By demanding a report from the Meerut police on the very first day, he sent a message to the public that he was active. To appease the family, he issued a statement alleging a lapse on the part of the Meerut police. He also sent a message to the family through Dalit leaders associated with the party in Meerut that the government would soon help them and provide justice. He did not fall for anyone’s deception. The script for meeting and helping the CM was written like this: According to a state BJP official, Aseen Arun spoke with the CM and arranged a meeting with the victim’s family in Lucknow. However, due to the CM’s frequent visits to West UP districts like Bijnor, Shamli, Ghaziabad, Bulandshahr, Amroha, and Sambhal, the family’s trip to Lucknow was postponed. It was decided to arrange a meeting in a district closer to Meerut. Before the Bijnor-Shamli visit, Minister-in-Charge Aseem Arun arrived in Meerut. He spoke with officials about the Lalita case, met with BJP Dalit leaders, assured the victim’s family of justice, and convinced them to meet the CM. Initially, a meeting in Shamli was discussed, but after Shamli, the CM had to travel to Bijnor. Due to his busy schedule, it was decided that the CM would stay in Ghaziabad and arrange the meeting there before heading to Bulandshahr for a public meeting. This is exactly what happened. In Ghaziabad, the victim’s family met with the CM along with Aseen Arun. The CM approved Aseem’s plan. On Aseem Arun’s recommendation for financial assistance, the CM ordered a grant of five lakh rupees, which was disbursed within a few hours. The student’s uncle and father were promised a house under the Prime Minister’s Housing Scheme, and two private sector jobs for the family. The CM also allayed their grievances with the police by promising strict punishment for the culprits. After arranging a meeting with the CM and providing financial assistance, the victim’s family was given a statement in the media, conveying that they no longer have any complaints and are satisfied. Political analysts believe that this move by Yogi’s former bureaucrat minister has thwarted the campaign launched by opposition parties and organizations against the government. Edited by: Vivek Mishra About the Author Vivek Kumar Mishra is a Senior Digital Content Producer at Navbharat Times Online (NBT.Com). He monitors the political developments in Uttar Pradesh. He provides UP political analysis and tracks events in Uttar Pradesh. Courtesy: Hindi News
CPI(M) accuses governments of neglecting dalits, warns of protests for house site pattas
Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretariat member Ch. Babu Rao on Sunday (July 19, 2026) accused the Union and State governments of neglecting the welfare of Dalits, tribals, and economically weaker sections. He said that the party would intensify its agitation for the allotment of house site pattas and implementation of welfare schemes. Mr. Babu Rao visited Devineni Gandhipuram in Payakapuram under Vijayawada’s 61st Division, where he and other CPI(M) leaders interacted with residents and reviewed civic and welfare issues. According to a press release by the CPI(M), the residents alleged that successive governments had failed to issue house site pattas despite repeated assurances. They also claimed that the allotment of TIDCO houses and house sites for the poor had remained confined to announcements. The residents further alleged that the scheme providing up to 200 units of free electricity to Dalit and tribal households was not being implemented effectively and complained of delays in extending welfare schemes, loans, and other benefits meant for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. Later, addressing the gathering, Mr. Babu Rao alleged that while the government was allocating vast tracts of land to corporate entities, it had failed to confer ownership rights on poor families who had been living in the colonies for decades. He accused public representatives and officials of delaying the issuance of pattas on one pretext or another. He also criticised the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation for focusing on the beautification of major roads while neglecting civic infrastructure and basic amenities in peripheral localities inhabited by the poor. Government and municipal lands were allegedly being encroached upon even as landless families continued to await house sites, he alleged. CPI(M) central city secretary Bhupathi Ramana Rao, committee member Ch. Srinivas and local leaders Melika Srinivas, Venkateswara Rao and Suribabu were among those present. G V R Subba Rao G.V.R. Subba Rao Courtesy : The Hindu Note: This news is originally published on https:/thehindu.com/bha and is used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes, especially human rights