Action sought against people who assaulted dalit man
POSTED ON FEBRUARY 24, 2023
Madurai: NGO Evidence has urged the Ramanathapuram district police to arrest the people who assaulted a dalit man and allegedly urinated on him over a quarrel in Ramanathapuram district.
In a statement, executive director of Evidence A Kathir said that Jeeva, 33, a dalit man is a resident of Nettendal village near Thiruvadanai in Ramanathapuram district. Jeeva is running a Tasmac shop in Karur district.
Jeeva had come to his village for Shivratri on February 18. Jeeva’s 17-year-old cousin had gone to the nearby village to attend a cultural programme on the night of February 18. A dispute broke out between the boy and a boy belonging to another community. Twenty more people joined and assaulted the cousin.
Kathir said that the boy complained about this to Jeeva. When Jeeva and his relatives went to the house of the boy belonging to another community on February 19, the latter’s father Murugesan abused him using a caste slur. Jeeva warned that he would lodge a police complaint.
When Jeeva and others were consuming water near a school, 10 people including Murugesan came to the spot and started assaulting Jeeva. They allegedly stripped Jeeva’s clothes and urinated on him. When people belonging to Jeeva’s village came to know about this incident and came to the spot, Murugesan and others escaped, said Kathir.
Kathir urged the police to register a case under provisions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and arrest all the accused. He also urged the government to provide a compensation of 5 lakh to Jeeva.
Since it is a case of caste discrimination, anticipatory bail should not be given to the accused till chargesheet is filed. Protection should be given to Jeeva, he urged.TNN
Courtesy : TOI
Note: This news piece was originally published in timesofindia.com and used purely for non-profit/non-commercial purposes exclusively for Human Rights
