With posters in their hands, the protestors raised slogans seeking justice for the Dalit victim and resignation of UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath
Mohd. Aasif | Clarion India
NEW DELHI – The national Capital on Friday relived memories of the 2012 Delhi gang rape case as various protest groups came together at Jantar Mantar to protest the horrific incident that took place in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh recently.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad, CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yeshuri, D. Raja of CPI, actress Swara Bhasker and lawyer Prashant Bhushan and hosts of activists from the All India Students Association as well as other student and rights bodies joined the protests against the alleged gang-rape and assault of a 19-year-old Dalit woman in Boolgarhi village of the district.
With posters in their hands, the protestors raised slogans seeking justice for the Hathras victim. The date of protests was significant as it coincided with Gandhi Jayanti, or the anniversary of the birth of Mahatma Gandhi, who was among the first to fight for oppressed members of the so-called lower castes.
Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad said, “It is not the administration, it is the work of the UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who has barred entry to all including media and national or political leaders. I appeal to all safai karamcharis (sanitation workers) to stop working and let this government live in dirt.”
The Uttar Pradesh government and the UP Police are under attack over the alleged gang-rape and the manner in which the victim’s cremation was done by the Hathras administration in the dead of night.
Demanding the resignation of Adityanath, Azad said that it had brought back painful memories of the 2012 Delhi gang rape case.
Bhasker said: “The rape with the Hathras Victim was the first crime. The second crime was the inaction of the administration in UP. We demand an impartial judicial enquiry instead of the SIT set up by the UP government as we have full faith in the judicial system and hope that justice would be served.”
The Dalit woman, who died on September 29, suffered fractures, paralysis and a spinal injury after a savage assault by four men from the so-called upper castes. The police said there was a gash in her tongue because she had bitten it while being strangled.
In the victim’s village, media and political leaders are not being allowed and the police have sealed the village.
Kejriwal said, “We have assembled here in grief. I pray to God that our daughter’s soul gets peace. I request the Uttar Pradesh government with my hands folded, hang the guilty as soon as possible. They should get such a punishment that no one will dare commit a crime like this again.”
“I will visit #Hathras. Our struggle will continue till the time UP CM doesn’t resign, & justice is served. I urge SC to take cognizance of the incident,” Azad tweeted.
The Delhi Police had imposed restrictions on crowds at India Gate, after which Azad said the agitation had been shifted to Jantar Mantar, 3 km away. While the police order said only 100 people would be allowed at Jantar Mantar, nearly 1,000 turned up at the protest this evening.
After sunset, the protesters lit up candles and stood holding them in the dark, as policemen watched over them.
“The UP government has no right to stay in power. Our demand is that justice should be served,” said Yechury. “The silence of the central government and the top leadership of the BJP on such a heinous crime and the UP government’s response thereafter speak volumes about the authoritarian and anti-democratic chehra, chaal, charitra, and chintan of the ruling party,” he said.
Slogans of ‘Azadi’, ‘Halla Bol’
What brought people at the Jantar Mantar on Friday was the feeling of sadness, fear, rage, anger and insecurity of women, girls and infants. They held placards inscribed with ‘We Want Justice’, ‘Modi-Yogi Down Down’, ‘Beti Bachao is not a slogan rather warning’ and ‘Dalit Lives Matter’. Protesters also shouted the slogans of ‘Azadi’ and ‘Halla Bol’.
Condemning the act of forceful cremation, Delhi Secretary of All India Mahila Sanskritik Sangathan (AIMSS) Ritu Kaushik said, “It is shameful. Police treated a rape victim like a criminal after her death by not allowing the family her last rites.”
Individuals, who are not attached to any political collective also joined the protest. Shifa Khan, a 20-year-old law student, thinks that in order to prevent such incidents to take place, the government should itself change first.
Smriti Thakur, a school passout and a college aspirant was enraged because the government has done nothing about the issue. On the question of her protesting, she simply said, “if it’s not me then who?” While giving the scale of anger and the rage among people against such incidents, she believes that this movement is going to be amplified just like Nirbhaya case. She is so angry that she is ready to sit and keep shouting for the whole night if needed.
Vartika Mani Tripathi, a writer and member of All India Association of Lawyers for Justice (AILAJ), said that UP has become a den of rapists. “The patriarchal mindset clubbed with caste supremacy leads to such crimes”, she said while giving the reason behind such heinous crimes on Dalit girls.
Calling the condition of Law and Order in Uttar Pradesh worrisome, Saleem Engineer, National Vice-President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hindi, said, “Government and law enforcement agencies should work towards strict and fast justice. ”
“Political parties should stand with the families of victims and not seek any political benefits from such incidents”, he added.
Delhi University’s Prof. Apoorvanand said that other than the politics it has no answer that a Dalit girl, victim of violence, cannot be brought to Delhi for special treatment even after 15 days.
“People want to express their human rage and anger on the roads and when they do, they [people in power] call it politics”, he added.
Along with government and police administration, media has been under severe criticism on the rape incidents. Poet and Scientist, Guahar Raza told Clarion India that he pity the media for its role. He said that they [people in media] are speaking the language of people in power.
“Whenever the media goes against its people it becomes dangerous for democracy”, he added.
Jantar Mantar has witnessed a huge crowd after a long time due to Coronavirus pandemic induced lockdown. Tanushree, an NGO Worker, said she has lost trust in government. She said, “The day people stopped coming out to protest, that’s when people really lost the battle.”
Priyanka at Valmiki Temple
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra attended a prayer meet at Delhi’s Valmiki Temple. “We will ensure justice for our sister. We won’t sit quietly till she does not get justice,” Priyanka said, addressing a crowd of Congress supporters and demonstrators.
“The government did not help at all. Her family is feeling helpless. We will put political pressure on the government. She wasn’t even given a cremation following Hindu customs,” Priyanka said.
