Even after death, death was not preserved!: People did not allow cremation of Dalit elderly in the crematorium of Gametha village of Vadodara, police complaint against 13
4 August, 2023
A 68-year-old Dalit man living in Gametha village of Padra taluk of Vadodara district has been in a big controversy after the villagers did not allow him to cremate him in the only crematorium of the village. After 15 hours of dead bodies falling, Dalits were forced to cremate away from the crematorium late in the evening on the instructions of the villagers. Due to this act done to the Dalit society, the leaders of the society reached the Vado police station today and filed a complaint against 13 including the Sarpanch’s husband who did not allow the last rites.
According to the information received, 68-year-old Kanchanbhai Vankar, a Dalit resident of the village, died on Wednesday morning due to old age. After his death, there was grief in the family and Paliya. After the people of the society arrived, preparations were made for his funeral.
After the funeral was stopped, the funeral procession was taken out in the presence of family members . A large number of people from Paliya and society joined the funeral procession. The funeral procession reached the village’s only graveyard. The funeral procession reached the crematorium and was preparing for the funeral. In the meantime, villagers including Naginbhai Patel, the husband of the village sarpanch, arrived and stopped the funeral.
Controversy arose after the villagers did not allow the cremation
. The body of Kanchanbhai, who died in the morning, was not cremated for about 15 hours. When the dispute arose, the senior police also arrived. The police also tried to find an amicable solution to this social dispute, using common sense, but the villagers were adamant not to allow the cremation of a person from the Dalit community in the village crematorium.
Body falling for hours
After hours of disputes, Dalit Kanchanbhai Vankar was not allowed to be cremated by the villagers in the village crematorium. He was forced to be cremated in an open space away from the crematorium. As hours passed, it was late evening and it was raining, family members and members of the Dalit community performed Kanchanbhai Vankar’s last rites in an open space away from the crematorium. It stopped the controversy of the day from escalating.
Despite the slogans of ‘end casteism’
, the act of casteism committed against the Dalit community in Gametha village on Wednesday had deep repercussions in the Dalit community. Today Dalit community leaders of Padra taluka and Vadodara Dalit community leaders including Bharatbhai reached Vadoo and along with the family of the deceased person and the people of the society reached the Vadoo police station with slogans of “Abolish casteism”. A complaint was filed against 13 people, including Naginbhai Patel, the husband of the village sarpanch, who did not allow the rites to take place.
Bharatbhai, a leader of the Dalit community demanding police protection
, said that there is only one crematorium in the village, there is no separate crematorium for the Dalit community. After the death of a person from the Dalit community, they came today to complain that they were not allowed to be cremated in the village crematorium. We have also made a representation to the head of police that the Dalit family should be given police protection.
Another leader who came with weapons
alleged that after the death of a person from our Dalit community, the villagers did not allow him to be cremated in the village crematorium. Slurred against caste and said that you have no right to be cremated in the village crematorium. Villagers rushed to the crematorium in large numbers with weapons and threatened not to cremate the village crematorium. Today we came to Vado police station to file a complaint and filed a complaint.
Complaint in Vada Police Station
The PI of Vada Police Station has raised a lot of confusion in the entire Padra Taluk including Vada Panthak. V.M. Tank said that an old man from the Dalit community of Gametha village had died. The people of the village did not allow him to be cremated in the village graveyard. Arrangements were made to maintain law and order. The cremation was done away from the crematorium amid police presence and the matter was settled. Today, the people of the Dalit community have filed a complaint against 13 people, including Naginbhai Patel, the husband of the sarpanch of Gametha village, in the Vado police station. The police have registered a case and are taking action.
