Additional police forces have been deployed in Gabela village area where some people led by BSP leader and Dalit Utthan Jaunsar Bawar Parivartan Yatra member Daulat Kunwar have been agitating over their allegation that the Dalits are not being allowed to enter the Kukushi temple.
Meanwhile, around 250 people belonging to Scheduled Caste from Gabela area staged a sit-in on Wednesday, demanding the administration to oust the agitators from the region, alleging that they are disturbing the ambience of peace prevailing there for long. One of them said they have been living peacefully with the tribal people who are the majority of the area for years.
“The administration should take stern action against the BSP-backed handful of people who are hell-bent on breaching peace here. We have never been stopped from stepping into the temple,” he said.
Another said the BSP leader Daulat Kunwar who had lost the 2012 Assembly election has been inciting the Dalit people to build up his constituency with eyes fixed on the upcoming election. “The administration should not brook such nonsense,” he said.
However, taking the agitation into Dehradun, BSP activists demonstrated near BR Ambedkar’s statue at Clock Tower on Wednesday. Speakers on the occasion said that the ban on entry of the Parivartan Yatra Dal activists in Kukshi temple at Gabela village of Jaunsar militates against the norms of democracy. They said the administration should ensure that the Dalits enter the temple. Besides, they must provide fool-proof security to the Dal activists, they said. “We would take out rally and reach Chakrata if our demands are not met in 24hours,” said Mairam Singh Koli, a local BSP leader. Ramesh Kumar and Tejpal, Mansingh Gautam were among others who were present on the occasion.
Asked for comment, senior BJP leader Ajay Bhatt who is also the leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly said that an amicable solution must be sought, taking all concerned on board. “The Constitution mandates that nobody is discriminated against on the basis of caste and community. There should be no bar on anybody as far as entry into a temple is concerned,” he said.