http://www.hindu.com/2008/10/29/stories/2008102954050500.htm
National Temple priest held for Dalit's murder in Rajasthan village Special Correspondent A fact-finding team which visited the village says he is involved in several cases Financial assistance and free education to the victim's children sought JAIPUR: A temple priest at a village in Dausa district of Rajasthan allegedly murdered a Dalit man over the weekend purportedly for answering the call of nature at some distance from the place of worship. The priest, known for his caste biases, used to misbehave with Dalits and would not allow them to enter the temple or worship there. Hanuman Das, priest of the Hanuman temple in Khartala Nayawas village, allegedly killed 35-year-old Ramphool Koli with a scimitar after verbally abusing him this past Saturday morning. He also mutilated the victim's body and disfigured his face. The priest had been living in the Dalit-dominated village, 22 km from the district headquarters, for five years and had himself built the temple on a piece of government land. Later he encroached upon adjacent government land and is said to be illegally occupying the 25-bigha plot of land. Police have arrested Hanuman Das after registering a case against him under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code and Section 3(2) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The accused has been remanded to police custody. A fact-finding team of the Jaipur-based Centre for Dalit Rights (CDR), which visited Khartala Nayawas after the murder over the weekend, alleged that the police are now trying to weaken the case by diluting its caste angle. The case under the SC/ST Act did not mention that the Dalit victim was killed as a result of untouchability practised by the priest. The CDR coordinator, Ramdayal Bairwa, said on Tuesday that witnesses had deposed to having seen the priest's brother, Kailash Chand Rana – with a known criminal background – on the spot, giving rise to suspicion that he too was involved in the murder. However, the police have not registered any case against him. Despite being informed of the crime early in the morning, the police reportedly reached the spot four hours later, when Ramphool had bled to death. Hanuman Das was earlier involved in several cases of untouchability against Dalits, including one against former Sarpanch Maya Mahawar. Mr. Bairwa said Dalits in the village had brought the "objectionable activities" of the accused to the notice of the police, but to no avail. He used to demand money from Dalits for establishing a "gausahla" and constructing an inn on the illegally occupied land while not allowing them anywhere near the temple or a hand-pump nearby. The CDR has demanded immediate arrest of all the accused in the case and payment of financial assistance of Rs.2 lakh under Section 12(4) of SC/ST Act to the victim's family. The CDR has also demanded that the district administration make arrangements for education of Ramphool's daughter Lakshmi and son Mukesh in a residential government school and include them in the Palanhar Yojana and provide security to his family and witnesses in the case. ------------------------------------ ---- INFORMATION OVERLOAD? Get all ZESTCaste mails sent out in a span of 24 hours in a single mail. Subscribe to the daily digest version by sending a blank mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED], OR, if you have a Yahoo! Id, change your settings at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/join/ PARTICIPATE:- On this list you can share caste news, discuss caste issues and network with like-minded anti-caste people from across India and the world. Just write to zestcaste@yahoogroups.com TELL FRIENDS TO SIGN UP:- If you got this mail as a forward, subscribe to ZESTCaste by sending a blank mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] OR, if you have a Yahoo! ID, by visiting http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join/ Also have a look at our sister list, ZESTMedia: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTMedia/Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
