The event comes after Supreme Court’s decision on the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.
Bangalore, April 11, 2018: To commemorate the 127th birth anniversary of Dr. B.R Ambedkar, the Karnataka Rajya Dalita Sanghattane (KRDS) is all set to protest and celebrate the day as ‘Social Justice’ day.
The KRDS is demanding that the Bhartiya Janata Party government support them to fight against the atrocities and in return, they say they will vote for them.
Nagaraja, member of KRDS, said, “Social justice is the foundation of the constitution framed by Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. By diluting the SC/ST Act the foundation has been broken down.”
“After the Supreme Court (SC) diluted the SC/ST act, we cannot take it anymore. This protest will bring attention to the dalits and the adivasis. We want our state government to take a stand on this. They are answerable to us,” he added.
At least 1000 dalit protesters from various organisations are expected to join the protest. Former High Court Judge H .N Nagamohan? Das, Actor Prakash Rai, Marullasidhappa and other prominent figures will attend the event too.
Yashoda D, president of woman’s wing of KRDS said, “According to a survey, every three days, one Dalit woman is raped, it is not even reported anymore. This will make life hell for a woman, especially Dalit. Women in this country suffer day in and day out, then imagine the condition of a Dalit woman.”
Gopala Krishana, member of KRDS, said, “If cases in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra have occurred where the Act is misused then they should look into having stringent laws in place like verifying and investigating a case.” Speaking about political parties like the Bhartiya Janata Party and Bahujan Samaj Party extravagantly celebrating Dr. Ambedkar’s birthday, Nagaraja said, “The birth anniversary came on a very auspicious occasion, during elections especially Karnataka elections. Parties are doing their best to woo the dalits.”
In reference to Modi government asking his MP’s to spend two days in Dalit villages, he laughed and added, “Why is Ambedkar Jayanthi being celebrated so lavishly all of a sudden by the political parties? Modi has declared a 22-day celebration for the Jayanthi. Why are carnivals and free food going to give us justice? They will visit our houses and order food from outside like Yeddurappa and Kumara Swamy.
