Around 40-odd Dalit families, forced to flee Mirchpur village here following an attack by some upper caste men two days ago, returned homes on Wednesday after assurances from the Haryana government.
The families, however, said that the attack had reopened their old wounds and they did not want to stay in the village any longer.
“We tried hard to put behind the attack on our community in 2010, but the recent unprovoked attack by the upper caste men, especially the Jats, has opened our old wounds. We cannot continue to live under the shadow of fear all our life. We demand that the government allot us plots in Hisar city and rehabilitate us,” demanded Dalit youth Ashwani Kumar, a post-graduate.
Uneasy calm
The Dalit families said that an uneasy calm prevailed in the village nearly seven years after the attack and now it seemed impossible to mend the strained relations between the two communities. Daily wager Tej Bhan, who was also injured in the attack on Monday, said that the Jats had boycotted them following the clash in 2010 and did not hire them for work in their farms. He said he and his father had to go to neighbouring Jind district every day in search of work.
The Dalits recalled how their children could not attend school for almost two years after the clash in 2010 as both government schools were situated in Jat-dominated area. The recent attack has led to a similar situation, they added.
Despite heavy police presence in the village, the members of the Dalit community conceded that they feared going out at odd hours. Another Dalit youth, Sandeep, working as a junior engineer with the Haryana government, said he has not gone to work fearing backlash.
Jats in majority
Atma Ram, 49, said the Jats were in majority and could not “digest the prosperity of the lower castes”. “We cheered for their girls -- Geeta Phogat and Babita Phogat -- when they won medals, but they could not accept that a Dalit boy defeated them in a race. They have suppressed us for generations and now cannot stand an educated, well-dressed Dalit boy,” added Shiv Kumar, who was allegedly taunted and harassed by the upper caste boys for winning a race that eventually led to the attack, which left nine Dalits injured.
Jan Sangharsh Manch state president Phool Singh, also a Dalit rights activist, argued that it was the failure of the government to deliver justice to the victims of the 2010 attack that had led to the present incident. Mr. Singh said that 82 of the 97 accused in the case went scot-free even as 70-odd Dalit families were forced to stay at Tanwar Farmhouse in Hisar waiting for rehabilitation. “Had these people got the justice then, this attack would not have happened,” said Mr. Singh.
