Gujarat: Upper Class and Dalit Groups Clashed in Ahmedabad's Dholka Town; Three Cases Registered by Police
Clashes erupted between members of the Dalit and upper caste communities in Dholka town of Ahmedabad district
Ahmedabad, May 23: Clashes erupted between members of the Dalit and upper caste communities in Dholka town of Ahmedabad district on Tuesday night. Both the communities attacked each other over the use of the suffix ‘sinh’. Kshatriyas traditionally add the suffix 'sin' to their names in the state. Police confirmed the incident on Wednesday.
According to a report published in Hindustan Times, Dholka Police has registered three cases, including two for atrocity and one for damaging property and attack. “Section 144 of the Indian Penal Code which prevents the gathering of more than four persons have been imposed, and the situation is under control,” reported Hindustan Times quoting Ahmedabad superintendent of police (rural) Rajendra Asari as saying.
No one has been severely injured in the clashes. Both the groups have registered counter complaints. According to the police, the conflict involved 22-year-old Maulik Jadav, a Dalit, and some members of upper caste Darbar community. The entire controversy started when Jadav added ‘Sinh’ to his first name on his Facebook profile earlier this month. The virtual war of abusing each other started between the communities.
According to the report, some upper-caste men attacked Jadav and then his house on Tuesday. In retaliation Dalits allegedly ransacked the house of a Darbar man. While speaking to reporters, Jadav said that some men in a car stopped him. The victim alleged that the occupants of the car then came out and started slapping him. He further said that he rushed to the police station. Jadhav accused that his house was attacked in which his family member was also injured. The victim runs tuition classes and is a supporter of Independent legislator from Vadgam Jignesh Mevani. According to Jadav, he was receiving threats from the members of the Darbar community for adding ‘Sinh’ to his name.
“In my Facebook profile, I changed my name from ‘Maulik’ to ‘Mauliksinh’ thinking we are free to keep the name of our choice. Soon, some Darbar youths started threatening me over the phone as well as on Facebook, asking me to remove ‘Sinh’ from my name or face the consequences,” reported Hindustan Times quoting Jadav as saying.
In the past few years, Gujarat has witnessed cases of violence between both the communities. On July 11, 2016, Four Dalit men were beaten up in public by cow vigilantes in Una, a small town in Somnath. They were tied to a car, flogged and paraded half-naked for 15km for allegedly skinning dead cattle. Just two day back, a 35-year-old Dalit ragpicker was also reportedly beaten to death in a factory compound near Rajkot district's Shapar town by five people.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 23, 2018 05:40 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).