Cows may be holy but those of dalits are untouchable

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AHMEDABAD: As the chorus on 'gau raksha' (cow protection) gets shriller with every passing day, a village in Mehsana district has different standards of treatment for cows. The cow is considered holy according got Hindu tradition, but cows belong to dalit families have been facing the wrath of casteist elements.
In Nandali viilage of Kheralu taluka of Mehsana district, five dalit families have been facing a 'social' boycott, since April last year. Supply of essential commodities like milk and vegetables to them had been stopped by other villagers. Three families fled the village but two have stayed on. Now, their five cows are not allowed to graze on the village pasture land. This has forced the victims to travel some 15km for cattle feed every day.
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It is high time to serve justice on basis of right and wrong instead on castes and religion. By looking at tipples you can not see what is under water.
Kishor Harilal Jani
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Finally, the family had submitted a memorandum to the distrct collector, asking him to either give them justice or allow them to live at the Mehsana collectorate.The agony began from April last year, when Babu Senma, one of the victims of the boycott, went to 'Mehsana Jilla Udyog Kendra' (district industry centre) to get the subsidy for a sewing machine. A member of the Darbar community, identified as Jujarji Parmar, slapped him and used a casteist slur against him.
Senma filed an FIR under the Prevention of Atrocities Act (PoA) but this drew the anger of members of the Darbar community, who gave a call to boycott the dalits of the village. Even supply of milk and vegetables to them was stopped, said Kaushik Manjulaben Babubhai, a dalit rights activist from Mehsana. Despite several representations, no actions was taken by police to book those who enforced this boycott of dalits."We have been spending Rs 100 to Rs 150 every day for cattle feed, for the last five or six months. The so-called upper caste community members do not allow our cattle to graze on the village pasture land. We can understand the pain of being boycotted but how can an animal understand this caste system and its evils," said Senma.

pg 4 toi 19 jan 2017