http://www.ndtv.com/convergence/ndtv/story.aspx?id=NEWEN20070024675&ch=9/1/2007%206:54:00%20PM
Dalit kids roughed up in Bihar Prakash Singh Saturday, September 1, 2007 (Patna) Suffering for being a dalit, a woman was burned by upper caste farmers of her village in Bihar, after her children dared to play on a temple's premises on Friday evening. About 10 upper caste farmers first beat up a group of dalit children at the temple, 25 km from Patna. Then they chased them to their homes got into an argument with their mothers, picked up a pan of daal cooking on a stove and flung it at the women. ''They beat my kids, who along with other children were playing in the temple premises. They have even asked us not to enter the temple premises, as we are dalits,'' said Rubi Devi, victim. ''They told us how dare we enter the temple, this is our temple, you have no right to offer prayers here,'' said Rukmini Devi, victim. The police have arrested one of the men, the others are still missing. ''One person has been arrested. We are in search of 5 others. We will take action as per the rules notified in the Scheduled Caste Atroticities act. ''We have lodged an FIR and due compensation would be given to the families of the victims and the law will take its own course,'' said Sunil Kr, SDO, Shahpur. Atrocities against Dalits are not new in Bihar. But at a time when the state government is boasting about appointing dalits as priests in temples across the state, incidents like these are even more shameful.
