A nine-month pregnant Dalit woman was brutally beaten for “contaminating” a garbage bin near a village in Meerut, said a report by The Times of India. She succumbed to her injuries on Saturday.

Savitri Devi was allegedly beaten with sticks by Anju Devi and her son Rohit Kumar, who incidentally are upper caste Thakurs. The victim’s nine-year-old daughter was also present when the incident took place. The incident occurred at Khetalpur Bhansoli village of Bulandshahr district on 15 October.

The incident

Savitri was pregnant with child and upon being inflicted with ruthless violence, she suffered a miscarriage. She had to be rushed to the hospital immediately owing to her serious condition. The doctors sent them back on that day.

According to her husband, Dilip Kumar, the doctors at the hospital sent them away on that day. On Saturday, Savitri was rushed to the hospital again. She was declared brought dead by the doctors.

“My wife had only accidentally touched the garbage bin. But Rohit and his mother Anju beat her brutally accusing her of contaminating the bin. The bin belonged to the Thakur community,” Dilip said. They also approached the Kotwali Dehat police station on October 15 but their pleas fell on deaf ears. They were sent away by the police. It was not before Friday that the complaint was finally launched.

The two accused were initially booked under sections 323 (voluntarily causing hurt) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) of the IPC. On Monday, sections 304 A (death by negligence), 316 (causing the death of an unborn child by act surmounting to culpable homicide) of the IPC and provisions of SC/ST Act were also slapped against the culprits who are currently at large.

When The Logical Indian spoke to Station House Officer of Kotwali Dehat Police Station, Tapeshwar Sagar, he confirmed that it is a case of atrocities against Dalits. He further added, “In this case, there are two culprits, the mother and the son. Cases have been filed against them under various sections of the IPC. They are attempting to surrender to the court, and we are trying our best to arrest them. An investigation will be launched once we arrest them.”

The post-mortem report though has reported that Dalit woman, Savitri Devi’s death was a result of an internal head injury.

The Logical Indian Take

Another news was doing the rounds, a couple of months ago, where Rs 500 fine was imposed on a Dalit man, who had entered a temple to pray. Similarly, in another incident, dangerous chemicals were mixed in the well, from where Dalits used to draw drinking water, to dissuade them to draw water from that well. One can even say, that adding harmful chemicals like endosulfan can also be an attempt to murder.

Where on the one hand we want to prove to ourselves and the world that we live in is progressive in thought, our actions betray this idea. We request the authorities to take strict action against the guilty and hope that the victim’s family finds justice.

Dalits face rampant discrimination at different levels in the country. The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) reports a 44% increase in violence against Dalits, up from 32,712 in 2010 to 47,064 crimes in 2014. These incidents are directed towards reminding Dalits about their status in a caste-based social structure and ensuring that they remain there.

The Logical Indian community condemns such atrocities perpetrated against the Dalits. The rule of law should reign supreme in a democracy; we request the government to act fearlessly against the perpetrators of such discrimination.

Also read,

“Is It A Crime To Enter A Temple?” Dalit Man In Telangana Fined Rs 500 For Praying In A Temple

In A Historic Move, Kerala Temple Board Appoints Dalits as Temple Priests