Discriminatory to take back cases against Patidar quota agitators: Dalit rights body

By Our Representative
The Gyati Nirmulan Samiti (GMS), a grassroots Dalit rights organization of Gujarat, has strongly protested against the manner in which the state government has been allegedly seeking to take back cases against those belonging to non-Dalit and non-Adivasi individuals.
Asserting that this is being done on a mass scale, GMS said, this is "discriminatory", and is being done to please the dominant caste people. "No cases registered against Dalits and Adivasis are being taken back", said GMS convener Sanjay Parmar in a letter submitted to KA Punj, who heads an inquiry commission the state government set up under the chairmanship of retired High Court judge KA Punj said, "This is being done purely for political reasons."

The letter has also been signed by GMS co-convener Rajesh Solanki, a Dalit rights advocate.
In a reported bid to placate the Patidar community, the Gujarat government last year announced setting up of the commission of inquiry headed under Punj to probe alleged police atrocities on members of the community during the violent agitation for OBC quota, which took place three years ago.

Apart from looking into whether the cases could be taken back, the commission is said to be looking into the needs of the agitating communities which are outside the purview of reservations, especially Patidars (Patels), who have been demanding a quota.
"Efforts to take back cases against individuals of particular castes and communities is not in the interest of the general people", the letter said, "Serious cases of violence, include those concerning sedition", the letter, copies of which were handed over to the state home secretary and the chief secretary, states.

It demands, not only cases should not be taken back, those involved in violent incidents should be tried without any bias or prejudice, and the state government should reimburse the amount equal to the property destroyed by the dominant caste agitators.

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