NATIONAL CAMPAIGN ON DALIT HUMAN RIGHTS is an Advocacy Platform committed for Dalit Human Rights at the Grass root, National and International levels. Dalits In News aims at sensitizing Civil societies, HR Mechanisms and providing updates of HR violations on Dalits for their Intervention.
NATIONAL CAMPAIGN ON DALIT HUMAN RIGHTS NCDHR Dalits In News October 03, 2006 1. Dalit candidates forced to withdraw from contest- New Ind Press- TN http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IET20061002132554&Page=T&Title=S outhern+News+-+Tamil+Nadu&Topic=0 2. Row over Dalit electorate rocks panchayat- New Indpress-TN http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IET20061003013500&Page=T&Title=S outhern+News+-+Tamil+Nadu&Topic=0 3. TODAY'S EDITORIAL: DIY Hinduism- The Times of India- Editorial <http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2068350.cms> http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2068350.cms 4. Attack on Dalit youths: police inaction alleged- THE TRIBUNE- Punjab <http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20061002/punjab2.htm#1> http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20061002/punjab2.htm#1 New Ind Press- TN Dalit candidates forced to withdraw from contest <http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IET20061002132554&Page=T&Title> http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IET20061002132554&Page=T&Title= Tuesday October 3 2006 00:00 IST TIRUVANNAMALAI: The election to the post of panchayat president of Angunam village, near Vettavalam, which is reserved for Dalit women, was stopped abruptly as all the four candidates were pressurised to withdraw on the last date for withdrawing nominations. It is said that Thandapani, the present panchayat president, who belonged to BC, had been elected unopposed several times. This time, as the post was reserved for Dalit women, Kuppu, wife of Kanagaraj, Anjalai, wife of Anbalagan, Malar, wife of Balan and Selvi, wife of Murugan, had filed their nominations. According to Malar and Balan, Thandapani allegedly approached the four candidates and their husbands and warned them that if they contested, there would be a clash. Besides, they would have to spend a lot of money for electioneering. So, it would be better to decide the president by mutual consent or lucky draw. After convincing all the four candidates, Thandapani had taken all of them to the panchayat union office on Saturday afternoon. There, instead of selecting one candidate by mutual consent or lucky draw, Thandapani had tactically pressurised all of them to withdraw saying that he would arrange for the elections in another two months and then they could decide on the collective candidate. ''We could have decided the mutual candidate now and utilised this rare chance which we Dalits got. But, no one was there to support us,'' Malar bemoaned. ''There are three panchayat wards to elect two members each to the panchayat board, under which one ward falls under the Dalit area and two under upper caste area. For the two members from the Dalit area, five Dalit candidates filed papers. But, Thandapani made all of them to withdraw saying that there should not be any clash between the Dalits and he would decide who would be the ward member when the elections came again,'' said Anbalagan, husband of Anjalai. 'But for the posts of four ward members which come under the upper caste area, more then 10 people are contesting and they are not asked to elect their members unanimously,'' said Kanagaraj, husband of Kuppu. Thandapani of the DMK was contesting for the post of panchayat union councillor this time. So, fearing that there might be a confusion among voters if they had to select a president along with the other three posts of panchayat ward member, union ward member and district panchayat ward member, he preferred to hold the president elections afterwards. His brother Kalyanasundaram, a VAO, and vice-president Basker, were instrumental among others in striking the deal. ''The president is not hostile towards us, we believe. But if he tried to de-reserve this presidential post we will approach Local Administration Minister M K Stalin, seeking justice. But, we are sure that Thandapani will not deceive us,'' said K Elumalai, a Dalit and village youth wing organizer of the DMK. When this website's newspaper's correspondent contacted Thandapani, he said that he had nothing to with the decision. ''They (Dalits) wanted to elect the president unanimously and there was no sufficient time to decide the common candidate. So they took the decision to withdraw all the nominations by themselves,'' he said. ''I have no problem in accepting a Dalit president,'' he added. Vettavalam town secretary of the CPM, Tirumurthy said, ''This is not a fair deal and our party would fight against this injustice to the Dalits. We have started to discuss the mode of protest.'' New Indpress-TN Row over Dalit electorate rocks panchayat http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IET20061003013500&Page=T&Title= Tuesday October 3 2006 11:56 IST THANJAVUR: In what is perceived as a jolt to the election process and the system of reserving panchayat posts for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, not even a single nomination has been filed for the posts of president and ward members in Sirangudi panchayat near Pattukkottai due to the controversy over the number of Dalit voters. The posts of president of Sirangudi and ward members which were open for all till the last election was now reserved for Dalits by the district administration as per the norms laid down by the State Election Commission. According to sources, the total number of voters in the panchayat is 923, with Dalit voters accounting for 574 as per the 2001 Census report. Based on the report, the administration allocated the posts of president and three members for Dalits. Meanwhile, about 500 Dalits converted to Christianity over the years leaving only 74 Dalits in the panchayat eligible for filing nominations. Subsequently, the caste Hindus opposed to reserving the panchayat for Dalits and they allegedly intimidated the Dalits not to file any nominations. Against this backdrop, the Dalit Panthers of India (DPI) wanted the caste Hindus to allow the election process as scheduled and appeal before the court for redressal of their grievance. Meanwhile, the DPI decided to field Chandraleka, wife of Muruganantham, as the candidate for the post of president and prepared the documents required for filing the nomination. But on the last day for filing of nominations, Muruganandam was allegedly detained by the caste Hindus thus preventing him and his wife from filing the nomination. "It is not fair to disrupt the election process. The aggrieved caste Hindus can appeal to the court of law to get their grievances redressed. By preventing the Dalits from filing nominations, the caste Hindus have made a mockery of the election process", DPI state propaganda secretary N Elamthendral told this website's newspaper. "We were keeping Muruganantham under our custody. We sent him to his village to bring his wife so as to file the nomination but he was detained by the caste Hindus thus thwarting our efforts", Elamthendral added. When asked about the issue, Collector C Vijayaraj Kumar clarified that the district administration had reserved the panchayat for Dalits based on the 2001 Census report as per the norms laid down by the State Election Commission. "We were not aware of the total population of the Dalits at present. However, no one came forward to file nominations. However, we have now informed the State Election Commission and the State government about it. The EC will conduct a re-election soon after the local body elections are over", he said. Asked about the alleged intimidation of the Dalits by the caste Hindus, the collector said that no one had made any complaint to that effect to the administration. "Had they brought it to our notice, we would have given necessary protection to the Dalits filing nominations. Anyhow, we will give necessary protection to the Dalit candidates when the re-election is held", the Collector added. The Times of India- Editorial TODAY'S EDITORIAL: DIY Hinduism <http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2068350.cms> http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2068350.cms [ 3 Oct, 2006 0000hrs ISTTIMES NEWS NETWORK ] Dalits in UP villages are reinventing Ambedkarism in the golden jubilee year of Bhim Rao Ambedkar's conversion from Hinduism to Buddhism. They have replaced Brahmins and scriptures with Bhim Patra to perform social rituals like weddings and funerals. The Bhim Patra, as the name suggests, is an offshoot of the Ambedkarite revolution that has redrawn the political map of UP in the last two decades. It shuns superstitions, God's intermediaries, and God Himself in matters of social conduct. What makes this phase of Ambedkarism unique is that its practitioners continue to be Hindus. They have not converted to Buddhism or any other religion. Conversion from Hinduism has been a central feature of Ambedkarite politics. Ambedkar's idea of Dalit emancipation did not differentiate between the Hindu faith and the social institutions it spawned. He called upon his followers to abandon the religion lock, stock and barrel; not just the priests and scriptures. The UP phenomenon indicates a middle path. The faithful have stuck to the faith at the expense of the 'guardians' of faith. There is no contradiction here. The Hindu religion is a do-it-yourself (DIY) religion. Unlike in semitic faiths, there is no single holy text in Hinduism. What is available is an eclectic mix of texts and their interpretations which discuss lofty matters of the spirit as well as worldly affairs. It offers the option to build one's own brand of Hinduism, especially when social institutions lose their rigidity. It then becomes possible for a person to be a Hindu and a Buddhist at the same time. The difference between arati and namaz blurs. The temple and the church will appear different only in their architecture. Of course, such autonomy is possible only when social institutions break free of traditions that derive authority from scriptures and other religious texts. The Church of England priest, who has been celebrating Hindu festivals in his Kerala home, even while renewing his Christian vows, is a good example of the autonomous believer. May his tribe increase.The biggest threat to adherents of the DIY religion will be from its self-proclaimed guardians. They are conscious of the threat to their monopoly over matters of faith. They speak of the purity of faith and the sanctity of texts. They seek to convert or prevent conversion. Needless to say, they have misunderstood God. And Hinduism. THE TRIBUNE- Punjab Attack on Dalit youths: police inaction alleged <http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20061002/punjab2.htm#1> http://www.tribuneindia.com/2006/20061002/punjab2.htm#1 Tribune News Service Amritsar, October 1 Even after three weeks of the incident, the Dharamkot police in Moga district has failed to take any action against the accused who caused grievous injuries to two Dalit youths in a dispute over agricultural land. Lakhwinder Singh (24) and Surinder Singh (22), residents of Daulewala Kalan village, Moga district, said around 15 persons came in a Mohindra jeep and an Uno car. They stopped the bus in which they were travelling for appearing in a court on September 11 around 8 am. They said Ranjit Singh, his son Surinder Pal Singh, along with their relatives and supporters assaulted them on the way. The two were rushed to a nearby hospital at Dharmkot from where they were referred to Amandeep Hospital in Amritsar. They alleged they had also met SSP a number of times, but in vain. They said they had also sent letters to the Punjab State Human Rights Commission but got a lukewarm response and were asked to approach the SSP, Moga. Mr P.K. Rai, however, refuted the allegations and said a case had been registered against the accused and seven accused had already been arrested. ARUN KHOTE Secretary-Media National Campaign On Dalit Human Rights-NCDHR 8/1,2nd Floor, South Patel Nagar NEW DELHI-110008 ( INDIA) Ph/ Fax-91#11-25842249/ 25842250 Mobile:0-9350183802 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website: dalits.org -- Subscribe to ZESTCaste by sending a BLANK email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] OR, if you have a Yahoo! ID, by visiting http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ZESTCaste/join Yahoo! 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