Dalit residents demand martyr status for 1978 Villupuram violence victims

Their demand comes in the wake of the recent inauguration of a memorial for martyrs who died in police firing in 1987 Vanniyar reservation protest in the district.
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VILLUPURAM: In a demand for justice and recognition, dalit residents of Valudareddy, GRP street and other parts of dalit residential areas in Villupuram have called upon the Tamil Nadu government to officially declare the 12 victims of the 1978 Villupuram caste violence as martyrs.

Their demand comes in the wake of the recent inauguration of a memorial for martyrs who died in police firing in 1987 Vanniyar reservation protest in the district. VCK General Secretary and Villupuram MP D Ravikumar has publicly urged the government to validate the agency of dalits in the history of this land.

The caste violence in Villupuram, which occurred on July 25, 1978, was allegedly a brutal and premeditated attack by caste Hindus on the dalit community, that killed 12 people from the Schedule Caste community who were mainly hawkers and labourers.

The people who were killed were identified as Mani Kundu, Selvaraj, Mannangatti, Veerappan, Thirumal, Kathavarayan, Ramasamy, Arumugam, Sakthi, Rangasamy, Sekar, and Irusammal. A memorial stone is laid at the entrance of GRP street for them.

The then Chief Minister M G Ramachandran-led state government dismissed the violence as an “anti-social act” rather than a caste-based atrocity. The District Collector of South Arcot, P S Pandian submitted a report on July 31, 1978, downplaying the massacre, and the government accepted the report.

Speaking to TNIE, professor of journalism at Madurai Kamaraj University, J Balasubramaniam said, “Even an inquiry commission, led by R Sadasivam, which later documented the systematic nature of the attacks, failed to bring justice for the victims. Findings from the Sadasivam Commission revealed that the massacre was planned in advance.”

According to a report by D David in his book ‘Villupuram Padukolai 1978’ - on July 24, 1978, a caste Hindu shop owner had closed his shop in preparation for a bandh the following day. Violence broke out soon after a clash between a few people over alleged harassment against a dalit woman, in the market.

By July 25 and 26, violent mobs had torched Dalit homes, looted their belongings, and brutally attacked residents. As many as 12 individuals were hacked to death, some were burned together, and others were thrown onto railway tracks and into the Marudur Lake.

Decades later, the continued lack of a memorial for the 12 dalit victims stands in stark contrast to the government’s recent move to commemorate other historical events. Many residents in the district, along with various social justice activists, argued that the selective recognition of historical tragedies exposes the deep-rooted caste bias in the state’s approach to justice.

Dalit scholar Chandru Mayavan argued, “The government’s willingness to recognise some victims of violence while ignoring others sends a troubling message about whose lives are deemed valuable. Victims of Melavalavu violence, Thamirabarani firing, Keezhvenmani massacre, never had the chance of being called ‘martyrs.’ But the government will build memorials to please the intermediate caste people, and pay tribute to their caste leaders every year.”

A Gunanidhi, a 35 years-old resident of GRP street said, “The state is supposed to protect the lives of all people but somehow always dalit deaths are clearly ignored. Police firing is one form of state violence while caste is also a long, densely practised violence that the state has not controlled and let many dalit people lose their lives for it.” Agreeing with the demand, Vikravandi MLA Anniyur A Siva told TNIE, "It is their right to demand and the state must take efforts to fulfil them."

The violence has left scars till date and dalit traders in the Old Market area continue to face severe discrimination, with caste Hindus systematically denying them fair opportunities to conduct business.

Vasugi Bhaskar of Neelam Publications told TNIE, “News reports indicate that Dalit vendors are frequently harassed, prevented from setting up stalls, and denied access to resources available to other traders. We are still unable to see a dalit business owner in the market area because of the dark effects of the 1978 violence, before which many dalits living in the adjacent GRP street area used to run shops.”

Meanwhile, Nather Shah, a member of the district Home Guard said, “The memories of dalits being killed and disposed of in the Marudhur lake still haunts the people living there. It has left a dark scar among the oppressed community and it is only today, after generations of education and employment that they are able to demand for a recognition of the victims which is a fair demand.”

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