Mangalore: Dalits Stage Dharna at Monthly Meeting, Demand Justice

Pics: Dayanand Kukkaje
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangalore (PS)
 
Mangalore, Feb 26: At a monthly meeting of Dalits convened by the police department at the police commissioner's office on Sunday February 26, Dalits complained that despite expressing their problems and issues in every meeting, justice still eludes them.
 
Dalits for about an hour held a dharna at the meeting venue and demanded justice on various issues.

They said that cases of assault on Dalits have increased across the district. No action has been taken even though complaints have been given at the police stations. ‘B' reports are given even after the complaints are received, they said.

Dalit leaders lamented that Bajrang Dal leaders are dictating terms at police stations and said there was no point in holding monthly meeting of Dalits as no follow up action is initiated.
 
"Former ACP Ravindra Gadadi had been falsely implicated and deliberately targeted and made powerless," alleged Dalit leaders S P Anand, Lingappa Nanthoor and others.
 
Opposing this claim, DCP (crime) Dharmaiah said that it was an internal issue concernning the police department and that this (meeting) was not the right platform to discuss the matter relating to Gadadi. He told the Dalit leaders to focus on issues pertaining to them. He pointed out that though SC/ST quota is applicable while appointing a policeman, after the appointment all are equal and there is no separate rule for anyone.

The Dalits then staged a dharna alleging that many issues raised in previous meetings remain unanswered. Sunitha of Harekala has been missing since 4 months, and yet no action has been initiated. They alleged that Pandeshwar SI Bharathi had entered the house of a Dalit woman in Monkeystand area and reportedly harassed her, though the incident was brought to the notice of the authorities during the past meetings, no action had been taken.
 
DCP Dharmaiah replied that if people felt that police had not done them justice, they could file private complaints in the court of law.

DCP (law and order) Mutthuraya, ACP T R Jagannath, inspectors Thilakchandra, Ramesh Nayak, Ananth Padmanabh among others were present.