Dalit man’s private parts slashed, pregnant wife beaten by Hindu extremists
In the latest case of caste violence, a Dalit man, Satendra Kumar, and his pregnant wife Pooja were brutally attacked by upper caste Hindu extremists after Kumar tried to stop the extremists from cutting down a tree on his land.
The perpetrators, Vikram Singh Thakur and Bhuray Thakur, are currently evading police capture.
“They abused me and hurled casteist slurs,” said Kumar. “Vikram took out a knife and tried to chop off my private part, which suffered a big cut.”
He added that the extremists also beat his wife, who was four months pregnant, and hit her with an axe.
“They barged into my house and brutally beat my wife while I was bleeding and pleading for mercy. Before leaving, they threatened to kill us if we called the police,” said Kumar.
The couple reported that police initially refused to lodge their complaint against the extremists, and only did so after the victims contacted a lawyer.
“Now, we are not staying in the village. Kin of the accused are threatening us to withdraw the complaint,” said Pooja. “I am unsure about the condition of my [unborn] child.”
RSS affiliate holds rally, demands Muslim & Christian tribals be removed from reservation
An affiliate of the Hindu supremacist paramilitary group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) held a massive rally in Rajasthan, demanding that people from India’s marginalized tribal communities who have converted to non-Hindu religions be stripped of government benefits provided by the reservation system.
Tribals, also known as Scheduled Tribes, are entitled to certain protections and benefits under the law to help uplift them and bridge the socioeconomic gaps that exist between them and other communities. These benefits include guaranteed quotas in educational institutions and government jobs, financial assistance for education, health care, housing, and other social welfare programs.
“A person who gets converted into Christianity or Islam and lives his life according to that religion, that person has no right to remain in the Scheduled Tribe category,” said Sharad Chavan, a spokesperson for the Hindu extremist group behind the rally.
A similar rally has already been held in Gujarat state, and the organization has announced plans to hold more rallies in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh over the next six months.
Hindu supremacist orders Muslim family to leave Ganges river ghat
Police are investigating a viral video showing a Hindu supremacist ordering a Muslim family to leave a Ganges river ghat, or a set of riverfront steps leading to the banks of the Ganges river, which is considered holy to Hindus.
In the video, which was filmed in Uttarakhand state’s Haridwar city, a Hindu supremacist can be seen arguing with a local Muslim family, saying, “Only Hindus are allowed, no Muslim can visit this place.”
Satpal Brahmachari, a local opposition party leader, has labeled the incident as “serious” and pointed out that there is no restriction on who can bathe in the Ganges river.
