The Crossbill News Desk
A Dalit labourer from Sabarkantha district has alleged that he was assaulted, abused with casteist slurs and threatened after he expressed his wish to visit a temple in Himatnagar.
According to the complaint lodged with Himatnagar rural police on Thursday, the incident took place on the evening of September 26 when 38-year-old Shailesh Solanki, a daily-wage worker from Khedawada Lakshmipura village, was on his way to the Kal Bhairav temple, The Times of India reported.
While waiting for transport near a crossroads in Balochpur, Solanki was confronted by Bharat Patel of Dhanpura, who stopped his scooter and questioned him. Patel allegedly accused him of loitering suspiciously and demanded proof of identity. Solanki explained he was headed to the temple, but Patel did not believe him. When Solanki revealed his name, Patel asked if he was from the general category or from a scheduled caste. On showing his Aadhaar card, Patel noticed his surname and, upon learning that he was a Dalit, began abusing him.
“He asked me why I, being a Dalit, had come to visit a temple after dark. He then slapped me several times while hurling caste-based abuse,” Solanki stated in his complaint, reported TOI.
Soon after, two men from Titpur village — Narendrasinh Parmar and Jagatsinh Parmar — arrived on a motorcycle and intervened, stopping the assault. Patel, however, allegedly forced Solanki onto his scooter, drove him some distance, dropped him near Ghorwada, and threatened him with dire consequences if he returned.
Solanki later confided in his family and met the two villagers who had intervened, both of whom offered to stand as witnesses. Based on his application, police registered an FIR under relevant sections of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to assault and intimidation, as well as under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The case adds to a long list of caste-based atrocities against Dalits in Gujarat. Denial of access to temples, attacks during weddings or festivities, public beatings and social boycotts remain routine forms of oppression.
In March this year, a Dalit man in Vadol village of Sabarkantha district was beaten, stripped naked and paraded through the streets by dominant-caste men for allegedly entering a temple.
In Mandal village, two Dalits were thrashed by cow vigilantes for refusing to dispose of a dead animal, while a young girl was dragged by her hair for performing garba during Navratri.
In Una’s Ankolali village, a Dalit man was burned alive inside his home, with eleven men later convicted.
Such incidents are not confined to Gujarat. In neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, a Dalit man was beaten to death after his sister lodged a sexual harassment complaint.
According to the complaint lodged with Himatnagar rural police on Thursday, the incident took place on the evening of September 26 when 38-year-old Shailesh Solanki, a daily-wage worker from Khedawada Lakshmipura village, was on his way to the Kal Bhairav temple, The Times of India reported.
While waiting for transport near a crossroads in Balochpur, Solanki was confronted by Bharat Patel of Dhanpura, who stopped his scooter and questioned him. Patel allegedly accused him of loitering suspiciously and demanded proof of identity. Solanki explained he was headed to the temple, but Patel did not believe him. When Solanki revealed his name, Patel asked if he was from the general category or from a scheduled caste. On showing his Aadhaar card, Patel noticed his surname and, upon learning that he was a Dalit, began abusing him.
“He asked me why I, being a Dalit, had come to visit a temple after dark. He then slapped me several times while hurling caste-based abuse,” Solanki stated in his complaint, reported TOI.
Soon after, two men from Titpur village — Narendrasinh Parmar and Jagatsinh Parmar — arrived on a motorcycle and intervened, stopping the assault. Patel, however, allegedly forced Solanki onto his scooter, drove him some distance, dropped him near Ghorwada, and threatened him with dire consequences if he returned.
Solanki later confided in his family and met the two villagers who had intervened, both of whom offered to stand as witnesses. Based on his application, police registered an FIR under relevant sections of the Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to assault and intimidation, as well as under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The case adds to a long list of caste-based atrocities against Dalits in Gujarat. Denial of access to temples, attacks during weddings or festivities, public beatings and social boycotts remain routine forms of oppression.
In March this year, a Dalit man in Vadol village of Sabarkantha district was beaten, stripped naked and paraded through the streets by dominant-caste men for allegedly entering a temple.
In Mandal village, two Dalits were thrashed by cow vigilantes for refusing to dispose of a dead animal, while a young girl was dragged by her hair for performing garba during Navratri.
In Una’s Ankolali village, a Dalit man was burned alive inside his home, with eleven men later convicted.
Such incidents are not confined to Gujarat. In neighbouring Madhya Pradesh, a Dalit man was beaten to death after his sister lodged a sexual harassment complaint.
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