Protests erupt after Dalit man’s suicide in Gujarat

AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat government decided on Saturday evening to allot land to a Dalit family after a former revenue officer’s death in protest against alleged administrative delay in the case sparked road blockades and demonstrations.

AHMEDABAD: The family of Bhanubhai Vankar, a Dalit activist who succumbed on Friday night to burn injuries sustained in a self-immolation bid, refused to claim the body until their demands, including action against government officers and land allotment to Dalits, are met.

Dalits blocked the vital national highway-8 connecting north Gujarat to Rajasthan in protest from Saturday morning. Till late afternoon, the protesters refused to lift the roadblock but there was no police crackdown.

Opposition leaders, including Jignesh Mevani, Hardik Patel and Alpesh Thakor, arrived at the Gandhinagar civil hospital where Vankar’s family and a large number of Dalits had gathered.

Chief minister Vijay Rupani empathised with the activist’s family.

“The government has ordered an inquiry into the matter. The government is with the family of Vankar and we are committed for a thorough probe in the matter,” Rupani said on Saturday.

Vankar, 61, a retired revenue department officer, had threatened self immolation over the issue of delay in allotment of land to a Dalit family from Dudhada village in Patan district.

He carried out his threat at the Patan district collector’s office on Thursday and breathed his last on Friday.

His family has demanded that the government solve the issue of allotment of land to Dalit families in Patan, for which he took the extreme step, within a month. They have also demanded action against Patan district’s collector and superin-

BHANUBHAI VANKAR, 61, A RETIRED REVENUE DEPARTMENT OFFICER, HAD THREATENED SELF IMMOLATION OVER THE ISSUE OF DELAY IN ALLOTMENT OF LAND TO A DALIT FAMILY

tendent of police to whom Vankar had written a letter a fortnight back warning of self immolation.

The family has also demanded that a memorial for Vankar be built in his home town of Unjha in Mehsana district.

The Rashtriya Dalit Adhikar Manch led by Mevani, independent MLA from Vadgam, has been demanding allotment of five acre land to every Dalit family in Gujarat as per the constitutional rights of the Scheduled Castes, after flogging of four Dalit youths in Una by self-styled cow vigilantes in 2016.

“The issue is our Constitutional right. We have been raising it for a while now and Vankar sacrificed his life for the same. The community wants the government to act swiftly,” Mevani said at the Gandhinagar civil hospital.

Patidar leader Hardik Patel said, “Not only the BJP leaders, the Congress also have MLAs from the community and they should also press for the issue.”

“It is unfortunate that after so many years of independence, an activist had to sacrifice his life. The matter will be raised in the assembly,” said Congress MLA and OBC leader Thakor.

The budget session of Gujarat assembly will begin on February 19.