CHENNAI: An unprecedented police crackdown against caste atrocities at Villoor village with Madurai Superintendent of Police Asra Garga asking Dalits to ride motorcycles through village roads and closing down tea shops that refused to do away with the notorious ‘two tumbler system’ outraged the caste Hindus that they attacked the police on Sunday night.
Though Dalits of Villoor in Kallikudi block of Tirumangalam taluk had made repeated complaints on the caste-based discrimination they faced, everything was swept under the carpet till Garg visited the village on Sunday.
Among the atrocities the Dalits faced at the village were a ban on riding two-wheelers on the common road, restrictions on sitting on the benches at tea shops and entering temples and discrimination in fair price shops. The Dalits were even forced to wash the tumblers in which they were served bewerages in tea shops.
Garg, who made Dalits ride motorcyles through Kaliamman Koil Street in his presence, took the caste Hindus to task by asking them if they would tolerate such discrimination from upper caste Hindus.
“But the admonition only angered the caste Hindus. Around 1,000 persons gheraoed my house and tried to break open the door around 9.30 pm, soon after Garge left the village,” Murugan, brother of G Thangapandian, who was attacked for riding through Kaliamman Koil Street on Saturday, told Express over telephone.
“When I rushed to the village on hearing about the attack on Murugan’s house, I was shocked to see hundreds of people approaching us with deadly weapons and pelting big stones,” Garg said.
“As only a few police personnel were with me, we beat a retreat and went to the police station. But the crowd charged towards the police personnel and damaged my vehicle and police station. It was then I opened fire to bring the situation under control, Garg said. Fifty persons were arrested and charged under various sections including attempt to murder.
Now Garg, who has deployed more than 500 personnel at the village, is staying there and personally supervising the security set-up.
“This is the first time in the history of our village that the male members of the dominant caste have fled the village fearing police action,” said Murugan.
He said that this was the second time his brother Thangapandian was attacked by caste Hindus for riding a two-wheeler through the Kaliamman Koil Street. “On September 15,2010, my brother used the two-wheeler on a rainy day to attend to an emergency. Though a complaint was lodged with the Villoor police station, no action was taken then,” he said.
M Thangaraj, district convener of Untouchability Eradication Front of the CPM, said that the front had put up posters and submitted a report to the district administration on the incident. But the caste Hindus blocked buses at the village and threatened the police. So the FIR was not filed and no action was taken, he said.
Incidentally, Murugan’s family was the first Dalit family at the village to put up a resistance against caste atrocities and even refused to clear night soil 20 years ago. He said that more than 3000 caste Hindus at the village dominate all aspects of life.
Thangaraj said that 78 forms of caste discrimination are practised in Madurai district.