Dalits Media Watch
News Updates 04.03.14
Man held for Dalit girl's murder- Hindustan Times
MP: Minor Dalit girl immolates self after molestation- Hindustan Times
Visually challenged teacher alleges harassment at school- The Hindu
Ordinance on SC/ST Act Changes Hailed- The New Indian Express
Congress woos dalits with ordinance - The Economic Times
Stricter law to deter SC/ST crimes- Related Story - Deccan Chronicle
Hindustan Times
Man held for Dalit girl's murder
Three days after a 20-year-old Dalit girl was found murdered at her village in Sonepat district, the police have arrested her lover, Ajmer Kumar of Pinana village.
Police said that the accused had told them that he had relations with the victim for the last several months.
As his marriage was fixed for March 6 with someone else, the victim was allegedly pressuring him to marry her or she would 'expose' him. He said that he got scared and decided to get rid of her. He killed her and dumped the body near the village crematorium.
Mohana police station house officer sub-inspector Jagdish Chander said that the accused had murdered the victim using a weight-lifting rod which has been recovered by the police. He said that the accused was produced in a court and was sent to 14-day judicial custody.
Hindustan Times
MP: Minor Dalit girl immolates self after molestation
A minor Dalit girl set herself ablaze, after a youth allegedly had molested her in Garhakota town in the district, police said on Monday.
The victim took the extreme step after a youth identified as Nilesh Ladia, allegedly molested her, they said, adding that her father had lodged a complaint.
The 16-year-old girl suffered 100% burn injuries and is under treatment at the district hospital, the police said.
Allegedly, Ladia had threatened her that if she did not respond to his overtures, then she would have to face the consequences when she went to school to appear for examinations, her father said in his complaint.
Additional superintendent of police DR Teniwar said that since the victim was unable to record her statement until now, the police registered a case on the basis of her father's complaint.
The Hindu
Visually challenged teacher alleges harassment at school
A visually challenged teacher submitted a petition to Collector M. Karunakaran on Monday alleging harassment by the headmaster and other colleagues.
In a petition submitted to the Collector, Karunya Seelavathi, now working as a graduate English teacher at the Government Higher Secondary School at Maruthakulam, said she was transferred from the Government Higher Secondary School at Thirumalaigoundanpalayam near Tirupur in July 2012.
“Since I’m visually challenged, I am being harassed and teased by the headmaster and five other teachers for the past one-and-a-half year. As I forwarded complaints to the Chief Minister’s Special Cell, State Human Rights Commission and the education department, I’m being threatened by them. Hence, I’ve come to submit a petition to the Collector in person for immediate action,” said Ms. Karunya Seelavathi.
A group of people from Gopalasamudram South, who had come to the Collectorate, said they were forced to start a separate school in their area for the Dalit students, who were studying in a government-aided private higher secondary school at Gopalasamudram North as they were oppressed by the caste Hindu students there. Though the villagers had submitted a petition to the District Adi Dravida Welfare Officer urging him to take steps for establishing a separate school for Dalit students, it was never forwarded to the higher-ups in Chennai.
Moreover, the “affected students” should be enquired by the District Adi Dravida Welfare Officer and teachers who practiced “untouchability” should be punished.
“If the official machinery failed to take action in this issue, people of Gopalasamudram South will be forced to boycott the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls,” said G. Velayuthaperumal, a resident of the area.
The New Indian Express
Ordinance on SC/ST Act Changes Hailed
Welcoming the Union cabinet’s decision to clear an ordinance making penal provisions more stringent to deter people from committing crimes against SCs and STs, the SC Cell of All India Congress Committee has thanked UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and prime minister Manmohan Singh.
AICC SC Cell chairman K Raju said on Monday that the ordinance was the result of extensive work/consultations held by the National Advisory Council under the leadership of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi for several months before making a series of recommendations to the Union government.
The ordinance proposes that common crimes like rape, assault and kidnapping also be brought under the purview of this Act. Most crimes invite a jail term for periods less than 10 years but the amendment raises the term to over 10 years.
Amendments to Section 3 also defines new crimes and add few more to the list. Henceforth, obstructing use of common property, allegations of witchcraft, preventing entry into holy places, social and economic boycott and promoting enmity will also be treated as crimes under this Act and cruelty against SCs, STs.
The Economic Times
Congress woos dalits with ordinance
NEW DELHI: Though Jats quotas stole the headlines, the Union Cabinet had on Sunday night quietly cleared one more ordinance wooing yet another social group, probably more committed to the Congress than the Jats.
This ordinance brings into force an amendment to the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989, which makes a wide range of day-to-day instances of discrimination and caste oppression, offences under the law.
About 620 Dalit organizations from 20 states, all across the country, have been agitating for this piece of legislation for about five years. "This amendment means a lot for the Dalits of the country and they will be extremely happy with Congress for making it into law and underscoring the fact that Dalits remain Congress' primary social base," said Congress' SC cell convenor SDJM Prasad.
For instance, now onwards any dominant caste member who forces a Dalit or tribal person to get down from a horse during a wedding procession or stop a Dalit from using a utensil meant for public use or prevent someone from stepping into a shop can be sentenced to a maximum jail term of five years. And if a public servant willfully neglects to observe his duties under this law can also get a maximum punished of one year's imprisonment.
The public servant's duties include registering an FIR, recording the statement of the victims and conducting investigation and filing a charge sheet in the special court within 60 days.
New exclusive special courts will be established under the amended law by chief justices of the high courts to try cases of atrocities against Dalits. Every such court will have an exclusive public prosecutor too.
The UPA government and Congress clearly aim to win the hearts of Dalits by pushing this amendment which was a persistent demand of a wronged community.
The Protection of Civil Rights Act 1955 was the first piece of legislation that aimed at stopping untouchability.
It took about 25 years more to bring in the Prevention of Atrocities Act 1989. And now it has taken another 25 years to give it more teeth.
"At the twentieth anniversary of the Atrocities Act in 2009 all Dalit organizations monitoring the implementation of the law came together and sought the amendment of the law and thus we initiated the Coalition for Strengthening of the Prevention of Atrocities Act.
This Coalition has 620 organisations from 20 states. Now, the government has implemented what the Dalit activists all over the country wanted," said Prasad, who was the convenor of the Coalition too.
The issue gained momentum after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi heard out a group of 120 organisations at Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Contemporary Studies in May 2012 and soon it was picked up by the National Advisory Committee headed by Sonia Gandhi and an amendment bill was tabled in December 2013.
But it could not be passed in the Lok Sabha. By turning it into an ordinance and bringing it into force, Congress has kept it alive and made it a crucial political issue for Dalit voters.
Related Story - Deccan Chronicle
Stricter law to deter SC/ST crimes
News Monitor by Girish Pant
.Arun Khote
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of “Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC”)
Pl visit on FACEBOOK : https://www.facebook.com/
..............................
Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre- PMARC has been initiated with the support from group of senior journalists, social activists, academics and intellectuals from Dalit and civil society to advocate and facilitate Dalits issues in the mainstream media. To create proper & adequate space with the Dalit perspective in the mainstream media national/ International on Dalit issues is primary objective of the PMARC.
On behalf of
Dalits Media Watch Team
(An initiative of “Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre-PMARC”)
Pl visit on FACEBOOK : https://www.facebook.com/
..............................
Peoples Media Advocacy & Resource Centre- PMARC has been initiated with the support from group of senior journalists, social activists, academics and intellectuals from Dalit and civil society to advocate and facilitate Dalits issues in the mainstream media. To create proper & adequate space with the Dalit perspective in the mainstream media national/ International on Dalit issues is primary objective of the PMARC.
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