Palash Twitter: Teacher thrashing boy mercilessly in Karnataka.Dalits Media Watch

A complaint in this regard was yesterday lodged at Vittal police station by Dalit Seva Samiti leader Sheshappa with police, saying that the incident had occurred a few days back.

Sheshappa called for stringent action against Somasundara Shastri, the Veda teacher who is seen beating and abusing the boy.

The footage, shot on mobile phone, shows the teacher beating the boy while asking him whether he was a 'Brahmin' or a 'Kshatriya.'

The complainant said the boy was reportedly punished for some mischief in class.

A copy of the complaint has also been sent to the Women and Children's Welfare department while police said they have sought more details from the complainant.

PTI

The Times Of India

DEAL seeks records from SC/ST panel

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/DEAL-seeks-records-from-SC/ST-panel/articleshow/48947879.

,TNN | Sep 13, 2015, 09.47 PM IST

DEHRADUN: A week after the SC/ST commission recommended registration of an FIR against a senior scientist of the Defence Electronic Application Laboratory (DEAL), Dehradun, on allegations of bias, the DRDO wing has sought documents and evidence against the alleged accused.

Complainant Jagdish Kumar, a technical officer, has alleged that his assessing officer, the scientist, was biased against him due to his caste and had reduced his annual grades that are crucial for promotion.

Kumar had approached the police and the department against R K Aggarwal, group H-level scientist, posted at DEAL, Dehradun. After going through all the material on record, the commission had passed the order of registering the FIR under SC/ST Act on August 31.

However, DEAL, a wing of the Defence Research and Development Organization, is keen to get supporting documents and evidence before registering an FIR and has also sought certain clarifications in the matter.

DEAL officials had shot off a letter to the panel on September 7. In the letter, a copy of which is with TOI, the DRDO wing sought clarification if the FIR is to be registered before the departmental committee submits its findings or after that.

Speaking with TOI, the SC/ST commission's deputy chairperson Rajendra Barakoti said: "I am yet to see the letter, but it is strange that DEAL is seeking evidence and documents but not taking action as per the order."

Meanwhile, the complainant has written to the commission, seeking compliance report of the order passed on August 31. "It is disheartening that DEAL is dilly-dallying in registering the FIR as per the commission's order. I am also surprised that now a committee has been formed to scrutinize my complaint and evidence submitted in the commission."

The SC/ST panel has directed the DEAL director to take cognizance of the evidence before registering an FIR against the scientist under relevant sections of the SC/ST Act.

In his complaint, Kumar had alleged that Aggarwal, his reviewing officer had deducted his annual marks that were crucial for promotion due to caste bias. "Assessing officers have always given me good marks on the basis of my work and contribution. But the reviewing officer, Aggarwal, who was biased against me, deliberately used to deduct my marks. It scuttled my promotion for more than four years."

The Times Of India

No manual scavenging during Mahamaham: Municipality

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/trichy/No-manual-scavenging-during-Mahamaham-Municipality/articleshow/48970407.cms

TNN | Sep 15, 2015, 03.05 PM IST:

The Kumbakonam municipality has said that a special vigilance team has been formed and more than 200 bio-toilets connected with underground drainage channels are being installed to make sure that there would be no instances of manual scavenging during the Mahamaham festival, to be conducted in February, 2016.

The municipality in its reply to the chief secretary, municipal administration and water supply department, government of Tamil Nadu and A Narayanan, director, CHANGE India, also said that steps were being taken to ensure that the festival site remained free of plastic.

Sections 5, 6 and 7 of Prohibition of Employment of Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act, 2013 prohibit the employment of manual scavengers and hazardous cleaning of sewers and drains. Forcing workers into manual scavenging is a non-bailable offence that can lead to imprisonment and fine.

"The previous Mahamaham festival attracted over 35 lakh devotees, which is likely to touch half a crore this time. The toilet facilities become inadequate due to the huge number of devotees who turn up for the festival. Conservancy workers are called from the neighbouring areas on a temporary basis to remove garbage and for cleaning work including manual scavenging," A Narayanan had said in his letter to the chief secretary, municipal administration and water supply department, government of Tamil Nadu.

Based on his letter, the chief secretary had sought a clarification from the municipality, and the civic body claimed that 148 temporary toilets and 48 bio-toilets were being installed at the Mahamaham festival site, which would be connected to UGD channels, to rule out the possibility of manual scavenging.

Rajagopal, executive engineer, Kumbakonam municipality, said, "All necessary steps are being taken by the municipality to ensure that there is no manual scavenging during Mahamaham festival. Arrangements have been made to provide safety gears to the conservancy workers, including hand gloves, boots and masks."

A statutory vigilance committee has been formed under Section 24 of the Act which includes the municipality commissioner, town planning and health officer, sanitary inspectors and social workers, he said.

Expressing satisfaction over the municipality's move, Narayanan urged to ensure effective enforcement of the plan during the festival.

The Hindu

Caste bias: House panel warns people of action

HTTP://WWW.THEHINDU.COM/NEWS/NATIONAL/ANDHRA-PRADESH/CASTE-BIAS-HOUSE-PANEL-WARNS-PEOPLE-OF-ACTION/ARTICLE7656905.ECE

CORRESPONDENT

Expressing concern over reports on caste discrimination and two tumbler system, being in vogue in the rural areas, SC House committee chairman V. Anita warned people of stringent action under the Act and asked officials to look into it. She was responding to a report submitted by of Dalit Bahujan Shramik Union general secretary P. Chittibabu here on Tuesday.

Mr. Chittibabu informed her about the ban on entry of Dalits in temples at Jakkuva in Mentada and Kota Sirlam in Ramabhadrapuram mandal and the two tumbler practice at Vempadam (Poosapatirega mandal), Narasimhunipeta (Bobbili), Saripalli (Nellimarla), Veerasagaram (Badangi), Gundalapeta (Denkada),and B. Rajeru (Bondapalli mandal).

Approach road

Further, he also complained that officials were not responding to his repeated pleas for an approach road to the burial grounds at B. Rajeru (Bondapalli) and Datti in Dattirajeru mandal. He alleged that the police had registered bind over cases against Dalits for seeking a way to the burial ground at B. Rajeru.

Welfare hostel inspected

Earlier, Ms. Anita along with other members A. Ananda Rao (Amalapuram) and K. Jogulu(Palakonda), Additional Joint Collector Nageswara Rao inspected the menu at the SC welfare hostel at Venugopalapuram in Nellimarla mandal and expressed dissatisfaction over the quality of food.

She directed the officials to change the agency.

The Tribune

Rajputs, Dalits promise to stay peacefully

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/haryana/rajputs-dalits-promise-to-stay-peacefully/133477.html

Sunit Dhawan Tribune News Service Rohtak, September 15

The stalemate between the Rajput and Dalit communities of Baniyani village in the district was finally resolved today after a marathon meeting among members of both communities and top district and police functionaries.

Members of both communities signed an agreement and submitted sworn statements maintaining that they would stay peacefully and not indulge in any clash.

Deputy Commissioner DK Behera, who chaired the meeting, told The Tribune that both communities sorted out their differences and tendered mutual apologies. They had agreed to withdraw cases against each other, he added.

"The village peace committee will monitor the activities of youngsters. CCTV cameras will be installed at Government Senior Secondary School at the village," he said.

Rohtak SP Shashank Anand, who was also present at the meeting, said the village elders had demanded the establishment of a permanent police post at Baniyani. "We have told them to identify a chunk of land or building to set up a police post," he said, adding that police deployment at the village would continue as of now and would be gradually scaled down.

The SP said a proposal to establish a police post would be sent to the state authorities. Till then, regular and frequent patrolling of the village would continue with special focus on the school premises and other sensitive points.

The district authorities gave an assurance to the villagers that a youth injured in the clash would be provided suitable employment at DC rates.

Dalit community member Ompal and Rajput community member Mahender said they had resolved to maintain peace and order at the village.

The Tribune

SC students approach DC

http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/jalandhar/sc-students-approach-dc/133697.html

Tribune News Service , Jalandhar, September, 15

Students from the SCcommunity studying atthe HMV College for Women, Jalandhar, today approached the Deputy Commissioner seeking his intervention as the college authorities have been asking them to pay examination fee.

The students alleged that under Post Metric Scholarship Scheme for SC/ST and OBC student, they were entitled free education in the college. However, the principal of the college have been asking them for university examination fees over and over again.

A BA-I student said, "There are many SC students in the college, who are being harassed by the college officials. They are not able to concentrate on their studies under such circumstances. I have appeared for English examination without much preparation as they college was asking for university fee over and over. I have already paid Rs 5,000 to college when I took admission."

The delegation of students has been led by the ward no 53 councillor Vipan Kumar, who said that the disappointed has approached him several times on the same issue.

Speaking to the Jalandhar Tribune on the issue, HMV College Principal Dr Rekha Kalia Bhardwaj said, "We are yet to receive Rs 1.50 crore from the government under the same scheme. How can we run a college without funds? I have discussed the issue with Rajesh Bagha, Chairman, SC Commission, Punjab, several times. Now, I am going to meet DC tomorrow again."

She said, "Rs 5,000 that has taken from students is refundable. Meanwhile, we are asking for the university examination fee, which we don't use for college purposes. I have asked the students to pay the university fee in installments if they are unable to pay in one go."

Zee News

Third gender's body found in Howrah

http://zeenews.india.com/news/west-bengal/third-genders-body-found-in-howrah_1795365.html

Last Updated: Saturday, September 12, 2015 - 21:49

Howrah (WB): The body of a thirdgender, who was stated to be a member of thirdgender development organisation, was found at Shyampur area in Howrah district on Saturday, a senior police officer said.

The body of Deepa Haji, a functionary of the thirdgender development organisation, was found from the toilet of the house of another transgender, where she had gone on being invited, the officer said.

A wire was found lying on the side of the body which bore injury marks on throat, the officer said adding police lodged a murder case on its own but none was arrested till now.

According to her family, Deepa got a mobile call in the afternoon hours yesterday about the funeral of a member of the community in Shyampur area and left her residence to attend the function.

As she did not return till late night and her mobile was switched off, her family and friends informed the police and her body was found this morning.

The person, who had called Deepa, could not be traced in her house.

The Indian Express

The door is still not open

http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/the-door-is-still-not-open/

Debates over affirmative action reflect the resilience of bastions of privilege.

Abdul Khaliq

In the wake of Hardik Patel's theatrics demanding reservation for the prosperous Patel community in Gujarat, there has been a concerted appeal for a review of the policy of affirmative action, based on the well-worn arguments that reservation has hardened caste identities; that discrimination against Dalits is a thing of the past; that reservation is eroding efficiency in administration; that Dalits are now empowered and have a sizeable share of government posts, etc. Convoluted, impractical methods to recalibrate the reservation calculus are being trotted out. Baijayant Panda, a BJD Lok Sabha MP from Odisha, invoked a 2013 analysis by The Economist on the debatable benefits of reservation to endorse the view that making government service representative rather than capable "makes it hard to remove the dysfunctional or corrupt", thereby smearing the beneficiaries of reservation with the most odious attributes. The unmistakable subtext is that reservations must be scrapped

Casteism in this country has never needed props and it is a mistake to blame the reservation policy for strengthening caste identity. Caste consciousness is integral to our everyday lives; we are all scarred by it. So ingrained is caste in our collective psyche that even a Dalit who converts to Christianity or Sikhism or Islam is hobbled by her social origins. An irrational belief in Dalit inferiority is embedded in our culture. Recognising the social exclusion and oppression faced by Dalits, our founding fathers ensured that the Constitution had provisions such as Article 46, which says: "The state shall promote with special care the educational and economic interests of the weaker sections… and in particular of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and shall protect them from social injustice and all forms of exploitation." More than six decades later, we are nowhere near fulfilling this pledge. For purveyors of the myth that discrimination against Dalits is no longer a social problem — the "look at Mayawati" argument — reports from the last few days must be discomfiting. Dalit families in Yellaram village in Telangana recently allegedly faced a social boycott because some of them had been in the vicinity of two temples. As retribution, they were not offered work and their children were denied milk.

In another incident in Karnataka, upper castes reportedly imposed a penalty of Rs 1,000 on four Dalit women for entering a temple. According to home ministry estimates, thousands of atrocities against Dalits are committed every year. In 2013, there were 39,408 registered cases of atrocities against SC/ STs. Many more went unreported. Panda's aforementioned article celebrates the fact that the "proportion of Dalits at the highest levels of the civil services has increased from just 1.6 per cent to 11.5 per cent in 2011". What is conveniently glossed over is the fact that in 2011, out of 149 secretary-level posts at the Centre, where decision-making is concentrated, there was not a single SC officer. SCs and STs constitute almost 45.5 per cent of the safai karamcharis (sweepers) employed by the government. Needless to say, nobody begrudges them the disproportionate share of these posts.

The resentment against reservation seems heartless when one considers that affirmative action is restricted to only a fraction of the millions of jobs where Dalits are otherwise marginalised. Critics never tire of using the phoney pennant of merit to vilify Dalits, ignoring the complexities and rationale behind affirmative action. In our caste-ridden social milieu, a common mischievous assumption is that Dalits are at the bottom on account of their inherent inferiority. Sadly, recent judgments of the apex court have placed equality of opportunity in the narrowest sense above social justice by undermining reservations as conflicting with efficiency and excellence

How different that is from the worldview of Aristotle who, recognising the unevenness of social structures and relations, moderated the universal ideal of equal treatment of all human beings with his observation that justice implied the equal treatment of similar persons. Indeed, equal treatment of the unequal is an insidious way of perpetuating inequality. As Justice O. Chinnappa Reddy pointed out in a 1985 judgment: While "efficiency is not to be discounted, it cannot be used as a camouflage to let the upper classes take advantage of the backward classes in its name and to monopolise the services, particularly the higher posts and the professional institutions". In our elitist world, there is not a murmur when the state gives huge annual tax concessions to industry, or when people's representatives sanction generous privileges for themselves. But the same society is outraged at the crumbs given to its most exploited and oppressed sections.

The sheer virulence of the assault on affirmative action is evidence that the bastions of privilege will never willingly open their doors to Dalits. It is not the policy of reservations but the selfishness and prejudice of the privileged that stymie the national goal of a casteless society.

(The writer, a former civil servant, is secretary general of the Lok Janshakti Party)

News monitored by AMRESH & AJEET

.Arun Khote
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of "Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC")

arun.khote@gmail.com

pmarc2008@gmail.com

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