NEW DELHI: Dalit activists who are planning a protest against the Narendra Modi government and called for an all India protesting bandh on August 9, have appealed to the members of Lok Sabha belonging to scheduled castes and scheduled tribes to vote against the government, during the trust vote in the House slated for Friday.

The appeal was put out on social media from Thursday saying: “We request all Scheduled caste and Scheduled tribe MPs to vote against the Government when the no confidence motion is presented in Parliament,” on twitter.

But when asked about the whips that have been issued by the various parties for their members on Lok Sabha, that they have to follow, Dalit activist Ashok Bharti, one of the coordinators for the August 9 strike said, “party whip on no-confidence motion is anti-democratic. There should be conscience-voting on this and hence we make this appeal.”

He added, “If they (SC\ST MPs) feel government has not done justice to people belonging to their communities, then they must vote against the government. The communities to which they belong are watching which way their conscience goes.”

Bharti has been meeting political leaders during the monsoon session to garner support of their parties for the Bharat bandh.

