Recently a nine-year-old Dalit boy was allegedly beaten to death by his teacher in Rajasthan for drinking water from a pot meant for the upper castes. Ironically, this incident happened just a day before India celebrated Independence Day.
And this tweet just sheds light on how crimes against Dalits have been ongoing ever since the country gained independence.
In October 1947, a Dalit girl was beaten for drinking water from the “forbidden” well. And now 75 years later, this incident repeats itself in Rajasthan. Mind you, we are talking about a child who wanted water.
If someone still believes that casteism is dead and an age-old concept, they need to Google, “Dalit man” and the suggestions will tell you the gravity of the crimes committed against the Dalits. There have been instances where Dalits were beaten to death for simply having a moustache, falling in love with someone from another religion, or even eating with the “upper castes”. The list is endless.
And this tweet highlights one such incident. This is what other users on Twitter had to say.
Despite constitutionally guaranteed rights, Dalits are targeted daily for their identity. So, how independent are we, really?