Case primary details

Fact finding date

Case Incident details

Case summary

Pushpagiri village is part of Santhaivaasal Panchayat , Polur Taluk, Thiruvannamalai district. On 8^th July 2014, Dalits of this village were subjected to brutal atrocity by the Caste Hindu Vanniyars. To add to the woes, Police have arrested the innocent Dalits victims on the false complaint given by the perpetrators. SASY have done a fact finding in Pushpagiri village regarding this atrocity and collected relevant informations and Datas. Hereby we are submitting a petition seeking justice for the victims of this atrocity.

FINDINGS:

•          On 08/07/2014, in Puhspagiri village, as part of Pallayathamman Temple festival, caste Hindus organized an Orchestra. Some Dalit Youths of the village went to see the performance of the orchestra. While they were watching the performance, caste Hindu Vanniyars namely Velmurugan s/o Amirthalingam  and Bhuvanesh s/o Amirthalingam  verbally abused and attacked two Dalit youths namely Vikki s/o Seetharaman and Dhileep s/o Suresh.
•          Vikki and Dhileep immediately lodged a complaint with the Santhaivaasal Police Station. But the Sub Inspector of the Police Station, Mrs. Mohana was negligent to register an FIR. Instead, she filed a FIR on the false counter complaint lodged by the caste Hindu Vanniyar perpetrator Bhuvanesh, implicating 9 Dalit youths. 6 Dalit youths were immediately arrested based on the false complaint.
•          Sub Inspector Mohana served as a Sub-Inspector in the same police station in the past. During the tenure, she was found to be biased in favour of Caste Hindus. She had close nexus with them and acted against the interest of the Dalits. Hence she was served transfer to other police station as part of disciplinary action. She was reinstated in the police station again to ensure security during the temple festival. In reality, SI Mohana was allegedly posted in the same police station to wrongfully implicate the Dalits, to file false counter cases and to work against the Dalits.
•          As constant pressure was exerted on the Sub Inspector to file the case against the perpetrators, she filed an FIR against the perpetrators. Due to consistent advocacy efforts Santhaivaasal Police Station arrested 3 perpetrators regarding this atrocity.
•          Following this, Muthumariamman Temple festival was organized in Chinna Pushpagiri village. People from the 20 nearby villages visited the temple during the festival. On 03/08/2014, 5.30 pm walking over the burning embers/walking over fire ceremony was organized. Thousands of people from the nearby villages visited the temple. Santhaivaasal village Dalits are also participated in the temple festival.
•          During the festival, Dalit women of Santhaivaasal village went to the bushes to urinate. Caste Hindu Vanniyar youths watched this by hiding behind the bushes. On noticing this, Dalit women shouted out of shock and ran away from the bushes. Dalit women reported this to their community men. Dalit youths went to the bushes to confirm this. They have seen that the Vanniyar youths were hiding behind the bushes carrying deadly weapons like sickles, knifes, iron rods, cricket bats and stones. On noticing the Dalit youths, the Vanniyars started attacking the Dalits causing serious injuries.
•          Dalits namely Kuralarasan s/o Sampath, Chinnathambi s/o Mannu and Vino s/o Thandapaani sustained serious injuries. Navin s/o Thandapaani was subject to brutal attack over his head and blood leaked out from his ear.
•          After orchestrating this brutal atrocity, Mahalingam (50) one of the member of the perpetrators lodged a false complaint with the police station. Based on his false complaint, police have filed an FIR No. 117/14 u/s 147, 148, 294(b), 323, 324, 506(ii), 307 of IPC and arrested 14 Dalit youths including students.
•          On the complaint given by the Dalit victims of this atrocity, police have filed an FIR under FIR No. 118/14 u/s 147, 148, 294(b), 323, 324, 506(ii)  of IPC r/w 3(1)(r), 3(1)(s) of SC/ST PoA Amendment Ordinance, 2014 and arrested 14 of the Caste Hindu Vanniyar perpetrators.
•          Santhaivaasal Police Sub Inpector Ashok Kumar lodged a complaint against the Dalit youths. Based on his complaint, police have filed an FIR under FIR No. 119/14 u/s 147, 148, 294(b), 332, 323, 324, 506(ii), 307 of IPC.
•          Following this false counter cases, Dalit women have staged a protest and road blockade seeking justice and action against the perpetrators. Hence police have filed a case against the Dalit women again under FIR No. 120/14 u/s 147, 188 of IPC.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

•          Caste Hindu villagers whoever intimidated, assaulted and prevented the Dalits to participate in the temple festival should be implicated under section 3(1)(Y) and 3(1)(za)(c) of SC/ST PoA Amendment Ordinance, 2014, as they denied the cultural and religious rights of Dalits.
•          Disciplinary actions should be initiated against the police officials namely Sub Inspector Mrs. Mohana and Sub Inspector Ashok Kumar who filed a False counter case against the Dalits. Other police officials who went into the Dalit residences in the midnight and attacked Dalits youths and women in the name of maintaining law and order, police men who dragged the young women out of their house and harassed them sexually, police men who registered false cases against Dalits and who tortured the Dalit youths during the custody need to be implicated under Section 4(1), 4(2)(b) and 4(2)(d) of the SC/ST PoA Amendment Ordinance, 2014.
•          The Tamil Nadu government should order for a CBCID investigation into the breach and abuse of power of police officials such as negligence, bias, filing of false counter cases, illegal arrest and torture under police custody and to investigate the caste atrocity against the Dalits of Puhspagiri village and Santhaivaasal village.
•          Caste Hindu Vanniyars namely 1) Vijay Kumar s/o Selvaraj, 2) Kaasi s/o Chinnappa, 3) Rajaamani s/o Munusamy, 4) Krishnamoorthy s/o Munusamy, 5) Jeyaprakash s/o Chinna Kanchi, 6) Chinna Kanchi s/o Chellaperumal, 7) Ravichandran s/o Annamalai, 8) Dharani s/o Velayutham (PMK Member), 9) Ponnusamy s/o Raju Kounder 10) Murugan s/o Patchaiappan 11) Durairaj, 12) Vijay s/o Ramu 13) Ramu s/o Ramakrishnan, 14) Saetu and 15) Mahalingam, who were orchestrating atrocities against Dalits and working against their interest should be implicated under sections 3(1)(p), 3(1)(q), 3(1)(z) and 3(1)(zc) of the PoA Amendment Ordinance, 2014 and collective fine should be imposed on them as per  District Administration should provide security to Dalits protecting them from any possible atrocity from the above mentioned 15 caste Hindu perpetrators and should take some precautionary measures to prevent any such commission of atrocities in the future.
•           Dalits youths who were injured in the atrocities namely 1) Kuralarasan s/o Sampath (sustained injuries in the head and legs), 2) Chinnathambi s/o Mannu (sustained severe injury in the head and in the Coma since then), 3) Vino s/o Thandapani (injuries in the head and hand), 4) Navin s/o Thandapani (was hit in his head and blood leaking from his ear) were admitted in the Vellore CMC and in the Adukampaarai Government college Hospital. They are receiving medical assistance for their injuries. They should be given medical treatment in the Chennai Stanley Government Hospital to ensure quality medical assistance and speedy recovery.
•          Dalits of Puhspagiri village and Santhaivaasal village have run away from the village and took refuge in the nearby villages fearing further mass atrocity by the caste Hindus and also fearing false implication and arrest by the police. District Administration should build confidence among the Dalits to return to the village and should provide proper security to the Dalits of these villages.
•          To ensure justice, compensation and security to the villagers, the investigation should be entrusted with the police on the rank of Superintendent of Police.
•          Dalit children and youths were not attending the schools and colleges fearing attack from the Caste Hindu Vanniyars. Hence District Administration should provide counseling to the Dalit children and college students and enable them to go to school by providing security arrangements.
•          Since the Caste Hindu Vanniyars sexually harassed the Dalit women who went to the bushes to urinate, they have to be implicated under section 3(1)(w)(ii) of SC/ST PoA Amendment Ordinance, 2014.  
•          All the false cases filed against the Dalit youths and women should be revoked and they should be freed of these charges.
•          Cultural and Religious rights of Dalits to participate in the public festival should be reinstated