Meerut Caste Violence: UP Police Disrupt ‘Mahapanchayat’ Demanding ‘Justice for Rohit’

Uttar Pradesh Police on Sunday detained several Dalit activists along with the members of the Dalit community for organising a ‘mahapanchayat’ near the commissioner’s office in Meerut against the police inaction in the murder case of a Dalit youth, Rohit (17), who was allegedly killed by members of the Thakur community in Uldepur village. Despite the case being booked under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, of the total nine accused, only four have so far been arrested. 

According to Rohit’s family, the police had blocked the members of the Dalit community from reaching the ‘mahapanchayat’ and forced them to return. “When hundreds of us were marching to the protest site, the police had threatened us and forced to return back, while some of the villagers were taken into custody who were released after several hours,” Dharmendra Jatav, Rohit’s cousin told Newsclick over the phone. He added that the government is favouring the Thakurs as they are the dominant caste and discriminating against the Dalits.

As per the FIR, the nine accused are Krishna, Sandeep, Sumit, Puneet, Ravi, Nikhil, Vikas, Chotu alias Rohit and Rahul, all belonging to the Thakur community in Uldepur. The accused have been charged under SC/ST (POA) act, and sections of IPC relating to rioting and criminal intimidation.

The ‘mahapanchayat’ was called under the banner of ‘Justice for Rohit’ in which  several organisations including Bhim Army and Democratic Students’ Forum had participated. The police had arrested the organisers of the event including Sushil Gautam, Meerut based Dalit activist, who were released later. “It is our democratic right to protest. They did not allow that to happen. But we will not give up. We will continue demanding justice for our community. They may stop us once. But they are powerless in the face of a mass movement,” Gautam told after his release. 

According to Devendra Jatav, Rohit’s father, Rohit along with a couple of Dalit youth was beaten up by Krishna’s sons at a Kanwar Yatra in Modipuram (a nearby town) on the night of August 8. When Devendra, Rohit and several others from Dalit community went to reason about the incident with Krishna on August 9, members of the Thakur community attacked them with iron rods. Rohit was beaten to death while several others including Devendra survived injuries. Rohit was pursuing graduation from a private college in Meerut.

Newsclick reviewed the postmortem report of Rohit, according to which the deceased had thirteen injuries on different parts of his body. The cause and manner of his death are stated as “hemorrhage and shock, as a result of ante-mortem injuries.”
Devendra alleged that the government’s attitude, in this case, seems to be favoring the upper castes. “The five persons who are still absconding are roaming in the village while police claim that they are untraceable. The government wants our votes during the elections but always favours the upper castes, especially Thakurs, when any issue crops up involving us,” he was quoted as saying.