The country was caught napping as a massive Dalit uprising swept across several States against the alleged dilution of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
At least eight people were killed and scores injured in violence as Dalit protesters blocked trains, clashed with police and set fire to vehicles across several States during a nationwide bandh. Madhya Pradesh bore the brunt of the Dalits’ anger as six people were killed in firing. One person each died in Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, according to officials.
Bihar, Punjab and Gujarat among other States too saw protests and violence.
In MP, three died in Gwalior, two in Bhind and one in Morena. Curfew was clamped in several places and hundreds were detained. In MP, the Army was called out to control the situation in Bhind, and curfew was imposed in three districts. The Army and paramilitary have been put on standby in Punjab.
The Union Home Ministry, which rushed 800 anti-riot police personnel to MP and UP, asked all States to take preventive steps and maintain public order to ensure safety of lives and property. The violent nature of protests and spontaneous participation of tens of thousands of Dalits have come as a big shock for the Government, political parties and the media. It was obvious that the simmering Dalit anger on the ground had gone largely unnoticed.
Transport, mobile and internet services were hit in many States with over 100 trains getting affected due to protests.
In MP, one of the people killed was a student leader, identified as Rahul Pathak. He was shot during the clashes between the protesters and police in Morena and died on way to hospital, reported news agency PTI, quoting senior police officer Umesh Shukla.
As the violence escalated, the entire Morena town was placed under prohibitory orders. Major cities like Bhopal and Indore, too, saw violence. Trains were stopped at many places, including Morena.
A report from Jhabua said protesters looted shops during the agitation, triggering tension in the tribal town.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan appealed to the protesters to maintain peace in the State, pointing out that the Centre has already filed a petition in the Supreme Court, asking for a review of its order.
In UP, one person was killed in Muzaffarnagar and nearly 75 people, including 40 policemen, were injured in violent protests in various parts of the State. The UP Police has detained about 450 people.
In Rajasthan, one person was killed and 26 others, including nine policemen, were injured in Alwar.
In Patna, protesters stormed the railway station, forced closure of ticket counters and squatted on tracks disrupting movement of a number of trains. Normal life was also affected in several parts of Odisha where activists of different Dalit groups put up road blockades.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh appealed for peace, while law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the Government is not a party to the Supreme Court decision on the SC/ST Act and “respectfully” did not agree with its reasoning behind the verdict. Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, a prominent Dalit leader, appreciated the Government’s quick decision.
Senior Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad alleged that incidents of atrocities on Dalits and minorities have increased in the country since the NDA came to power in 2014, while AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal extended his support to the protesting groups.
UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath appealed for peace and urged the people not to vitiate law and order, as violence was reported from many districts, including Azamgarh, where protesters torched two State-run buses, injuring several passengers.
As protests turned violent in Agra, Hapur, Meerut in Western UP, Director General of Police (DGP) OP Singh said, “We have sought more force from the Centre that will be deployed there.”
Many trains, including premier Rajdhani and Shatabdi expresses, were stopped by protesters while some were short-terminated.
A group of about 2,000 people disrupted trains at the Hapur station, disrupting the movement of many goods trains, railway officials added.
In view of the bandh, the CBSE has already postponed Class 12 and Class 10 examinations scheduled to be held on Monday in Punjab at the request of the State Government.
The SC had on March 20 diluted certain provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, in a bid to protect ‘honest’ public servants discharging bona fide duties from being blackmailed with false cases under the Act.
The verdict is being widely criticised by the Dalits and the Opposition who claim that the dilution of the Act will lead to more discrimination and crimes against the backward community.
Major towns and cities of Gujarat also witnessed protests while civic-run transport services were halted after some of the buses were targeted by agitators. life was paralysed as violence erupted at many places in Punjab and Haryana while rail and road traffic too was adversely affected.
Protesters squatted on railway tracks at a few places in Punjab and Haryana, crippling rail traffic, officials of the Ambala and Ferozepur rail division told PTI. At many places, they burnt tyres on roads and blocked highways.
At Kaithal in Haryana, a protesting mob resorted to stone pelting and damaged a railway engine, police said. Prior to that, the protesters had marched through the streets after which there were some reports of alleged vandalism.
The Kaithal Police resorted to ‘lathicharge’ and lobbed tear-gas shells to disperse the protesters, they said. Around 10 policemen were injured in the incident, they said.
Protests also turned violent in Faridabad, where a train was reportedly pelted with stones. Marches were taken out by Dalit activists in Jalandhar, Patiala, Sangrur, Hoshiarpur, Ropar, Bathinda, Ferozepur, Kapurthala, Phagwara and other places in Punjab, and at Panchkula, Ambala, Kaithal, Hisar, Karnal, Rohtak, Yamunanagar, Bhiwani, Sirsa, Faridabad and Gurgaon in Haryana as well as in Chandigarh.
Markets across the two States wore a deserted look as shops and other commercial establishments remained closed while vehicles largely remained off the roads. In some towns ‘lathi’-weilding protesters marched through the bazaars.
The Indo-Pakistan bus service, ‘Sada-e-Sarhad’, that runs between Delhi and lahore was also disrupted. A lahore-bound bus was halted at Sirhind and a Delhi-bound bus at Amritsar for several hours, police said.
Former BSP MlA from Hastinapur (Meerut) Yogesh Verma was also arrested by police for instigating violence. He is the husband of Meerut Mayor Sunita Verma. Some foreigners, who were travelling on a tourist bus from Kathmandu, had a narrow escape when protesters targeted their bus and pelted stones at Sigri area of Azamgarh. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath appealed to the people to maintain peace and not to take law in their hands.
In Muzaffarnagar, a person identified as Ambrish of Bhopa police station area was killed in firing while another person was critically injured.
The protesters attacked the local police and even media persons were targeted. The motorcycle of a journalist of a Hindi daily was torched while cameras of several lensmen were broken. The mob ransacked several shops and pelted stones on running buses and trains in Muzaffarnagar.
Meanwhile in Saharanpur, protesters blocked Delhi-Yamunotri highway and also pelted stones at the police leading to a lathicharge. A few buses were damaged in stone pelting.