Ground report from Chhatar village of Haryana: After the boycott of the bullies, 150 Dalit families face food and drink crisis, even medicine is not available

Chhatar is the village of Uchana, the assembly constituency of Haryana Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala. This village of Jind district has been divided into two camps since 15 days. The reason is to give a complaint to the police against the assault of a Dalit youth by some bullies here. After which the angry gangsters have socially boycotted 150 Dalit families of the village. At present in the village there are Dalit families living in Mangu Bagad locality on one side and people of other caste on the other side.

Chhatar village is quite big. There are about 12 thousand voters here. 80% of the total population of the village belongs to the Jat community. According to the announcement of the collective panchayat of the village, no upper caste person living in the village will go towards the excluded locality. If anyone goes, he too will be boycotted. Dalits living in Mangu Bagad locality of the village are not allowed to leave the village. They are confined to their locality, unable to go to the farmers’ fields for work.

Alam is that the shopkeepers of the village are not even giving goods and vegetables to these families. Milk is also not available from dairy. The people of these families do not even put the auto people to go out of the village. If someone gets sick, the doctors of the village don’t even give him medicine. 150 families are joining hands in front of every person they think can end their boycott. But there is nothing to be found from everywhere except despair.

Many Dalit families live in Mangu Bagad locality of Chhatar village of Jind district.

When Dainik Bhaskar’s team reached Chhatar village, there was also a problem in finding the homes of the victims. Reason- No man in the village was ready to show the way to the Dalits’ house. As soon as they tried to negotiate on this dispute, the people of the village would leave without saying anything. Somehow, when the reporter reached Mangu Bagad locality, the locality, divided into two streets, was completely deserted. Two policemen posted at the mouth of the main street were seen keeping less of the security of the victims and keeping an eye on the commuters.

When the correspondents of Dainik Bhaskar reached the locality, the door of every house was found locked from inside. Whoever opened the door when he knocked, he felt terrified that someone might attack him. This family is so scared that even they are afraid to come in front of the camera. They feel that it will be difficult to live in the village if they say something against the upper caste people. After much persuasion and introduction of some knowledgeables, some young and old people agreed to talk.

Administration reached Chhatar after the boycott of Dalits: Social Welfare Officer talked to the families, BSP leaders reached the village, announced the gherao of DC office in Jind on 16th

70-year-old Lahiri Singh, who lives in Mangu Bagad locality, said, Gurmeet of our society went to the sports fair on September 10 to watch a Kabaddi match. There, Billu’s son Rajesh, who belongs to an upper caste, and his friends beat him up. Hurt by the beating, Gurmeet complained to the police station, after which a case of Dalit harassment was registered with the police and Rajesh was taken into custody. This is where our bad times started.

32-year-old Praveen said, the upper caste people are angry as to why Gurmeet filed a police case regarding the assault. He is asking to withdraw the case unconditionally and till this does not happen, the boycott of the locality will continue.

According to 43-year-old Rohtash Kumar, who lives in the same locality, upper caste people believe that Gurmeet has acted, so they want to teach a lesson to Gurmeet and our entire society. The upper caste people made an announcement in the whole village that our society should separate from Gurmeet and leave him alone. We didn’t do that so everyone is facing boycott.

This is not the first time in Chhatar village that a Dalit youth was assaulted. Such incidents have happened in the village four times before. Families living in Mangu Bagad locality told that they used to keep silent every time considering the situation as their compulsion because the survival of our families is dependent on the bullies of the village.

Threatened to withdraw the case, boycotted for not accepting
When Gurmeet returned home after giving a complaint about the assault on himself to the police station, the family members of the accused youth came to his locality along with some people of the village and started making threats. They pressurized Gurmeet to withdraw the complaint. Gurmeet was also ready to withdraw the case, but when the threats of the bullies increased beyond the limit and efforts were started to create such an atmosphere that Gurmeet has committed some crime by registering the case. Thereafter, he refused to withdraw the complaint. After which on September 26, a collective panchayat was called in the village and it was announced to boycott the entire Mangu Bagad locality of Gurmeet.

The condition of Dalits deteriorated due to boycott, even drinking water is not available
Mukesh, 34, who lives in Mangu Bagad locality, told that there is a problem of drinking water in the village. When she and the women of her locality went to get water from the temple, everyone was enraged and sent back. There is a shortage of fodder for the animals. 54-year-old woman Paramjit Kaur told that her daughter Shailja is preparing for bank exams and goes to the city to take coaching. After this dispute, no auto and taxi driver makes him sit in his car. Because of this, his coaching is being missed.

Gurmeet’s uncle Ramphal regrets that the entire locality is suffering because of his nephew. But he also says that for how long and how much to tolerate. Dalit families told that this entire area belongs to upper caste people and they are all united. He wants to teach a lesson to the entire Dalit community on the pretext of Gurmeet, so that no one else can muster the courage to approach the police.

dare not go to the authorities
Dalit families are so scared that after the social boycott, they are even avoiding going to the authorities with their complaints. They feel that if a young man has lodged a case, he is facing boycott. If they gathered and went to the officials, they should not be thrown out of the village itself. Some youth of the village claim that he had gone to Uchana SDM, then he said that a peace committee would be formed in the village to look into the matter. However, this committee has not yet been formed.

Activist’s claim – pretending officers
Aarti, a Dalit activist and advocate of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, who raised the voice of Dalit rights, says that the officers are just showing off. Dabangs have always wanted Dalits to remain subdued before them. The incident of Chhatar village should be seen in this context. The upper caste people want to terrorize Dalits so much that they cannot muster up the courage to open their mouths. He says that boycott is also a kind of harassment. Despite this, the police is not ready to accept that Dalit oppression is taking place in Chhatar village. How can Dalits get justice in such an environment?

DSP said- Case registered against 23 people
When Dainik Bhaskar correspondent spoke to Jind’s DSP Jitendra Kumar, he told that 23 people have been booked for social boycott. Chhatar comes under Uchana police station. The newly appointed SHO Inspector Sombir Dhaka of this police station said that efforts are being made to maintain peace in the village. Police is monitoring the situation.

Claim of dalit-farmer unity is false
The farmers’ leaders, who have been agitating in Haryana against the three new agricultural laws of the central government, had claimed that Dalits and farmers are one as both are fighting to save agriculture. However, in Chhatar village this claim seems to be false. Here the farmers and landlords have blocked the Dalits. Ramphal, who lives in the village, says that it is the farmers who boycott him. If there was talk of Dalit-peasant unity, why was he boycotted? When asked about this, Haryana State President of Bhartiya Kisan Union (Chaduni) Gurnam Singh Chaduni says that the issue of Chhatar village is not in his notice. If this is the case, then an attempt will be made to find a middle ground by talking.