05, Jun 2015

13 families in a Maharashtra village live in constant fear of attack
Facing a social boycott from upper castes and fearing possible violence, all 13 Dalit families of Ansurda village in Osmanabad in Maharashtra have written to District Collector Prashant Narnavre seeking rehabilitation near an urban area.
Mr. Narnavre said the administration would ensure the safety of the Dalits and see to it that their constitutional rights were not violated. On April 28, the Dalits took out a procession to mark the birth anniversary of Babasaheb Ambedkar, where songs dedicated to the Dalit icon were played.
“A few upper caste youths objected to it and demanded that we play songs on Shivaji Maharaj. We played those songs too,” Nishikant Humbe, one of the Dalits from the village, told The Hindu.
The young men desecrated the image of Dr. Ambedkar and abused Dalit women, according to a police complaint filed by the families. The police arrested four youths, of which two were minors.