VILLUPURAM: Caste oppression at Ottanandhal village has been in the headlines, thanks to a viral video of three elderly Dalit men being forced to prostrate themselves before caste Hindus during a khap panchayat meeting on Friday. However, the issue is nothing new, according to youngsters from the village.
Like many other villages in Tamil Nadu, Ottanandhal has a separate locality for caste Hindus, and one for Dalits. It is home to about 200 caste Hindu families and 30 Dalit families. Residents of the Dalit colony get access to basic amenities such as electricity, drinking water, ration shops and roads through the village, and on many occasions, the caste Hindus have disrupted access to these amenities, residents of the colony allege.
“We have no option but to keep going to the village. There are more of them (caste Hindus) than us, so in case of a fight, we are at risk. The ration shops are out of stock when people from our colony get there because caste Hindus get to stand in front in the queue. Only half of us get our ration supplies, and the rest have to wait for the next month,” said a 50-year-old from the colony.
When asked why the caste Hindus get priority access to these amenities, a sexagenarian in the village said, “That’s how it has been for ages. They (Dalits) are fewer in number and hold a lower social status, so they deserve to avail amenities only after us.”
According to an advocate from the colony who sought to remain anonymous, “Several times, the caste Hindus stopped our water supply by stuffing the pipe with underwear. Our power supply would be cut whenever there was a function at the colony. Roads would be blocked with logs when boys from the colony go out. But when we complained to the police, they would tell us to compromise. They won’t even file a CSR case.”
In April 2017, members of the colony celebrated the birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar at the government middle school, and when prizes were distributed, a group of caste Hindus led by one R Ramesh allegedly tore the posters of Ambedkar. “The gang stopped the event and abused us saying Ambedkar represents Dalits and so caste Hindu children must not be given prizes in his name. Even then, a CSR was not filed, and the police asked us to compromise,” said K Rajesh, a youngster from the colony.
Similarly, the lake in the village had only been used by the caste Hindu villagers. A 30-year-old from the village said, “People from the colony shouldn’t get the right to use the water because most of them don’t have land to use the water for irrigation.”
When asked about the allegations of caste discrimination, a member from one of big land owning families from the caste Hindu community, said, "There are a few youngsters in the village who want to fight with residents of the colony. But otherwise there is no issue.We all are like brothers and sisters. Sometimes people from the colony quarrel with us but we forgive them."