Vanmathi (12) belongs to dalit community, she reside at Ranganadhapuram, Nampiur in Erode district. She was studying 6^th standard in Nampiur secondary school. On 08.06.2012 Vanmathi and other seven dalit students were forced to clean school toilet by instruct of Subban school head master. This news was published by news paper. If investigated this practice was egesting so many year in this school.  If parents asked this issue, head master justifies this practice was good to students and also chief Educational officer sridevi also justifies this practice. 

Case in Brief:

Ural village is in Ulakur Union, Tindivanam Taluk, Villupuram district. Ural is home to 47 dalit families and 750 vanniyar families. Every year Ponniyamman Temple festival is celebrated in this village for 9 long days. During the first day, Nataraj belongs to dalit community usually  initiate the function by tying the bracelet on the deity. For the year 2012, on 04/06/2012, Nataraj was suppose to tie the bracelet. But as he fell ill, the vanniyars namely Kaliyappan, Rajasekar, Paramasivam, and Murugan, asked Nataraj’s son to tie the bracelet. But Nataraj’s son as he was a bachelor, he refused to do so. On 05/06/2012, infuriated vanniyars denied the dalits to play drums during the festival. On 06/06/2012 around 12.30 am Kaliyappan, Rajasekar, Paramasivam and Murugan, destroyed the VCK Party name board and the VCK party flag. On noticing this Murugan affiliated to VCK Party, raised objection to this. But Kaliyappan verbally abused him and threatened to kill. Later around 02.30 am Dalits and members of VCK filed a complaint with the Rosanai Police Station. On 06/06/2012 12.30pm Vanniyars of the Ural village convened a meeting and announced a social boycott on the dalits. Hence Dalits were denied jobs in the agricultural fields of caste hindus, Cabel connection were disconnected, Dalits were denied jobs under the NREGA scheme, denied stationaries and edible items from the shops owned by the vanniyars, Dalits herds were not allowed to graze the lands of caste hindus and Dalit women were prohibited to use to the open ground for defecation. Regarding this atrocity police have arrested only one caste hindu named Gandhi and he too was released on the same day.

Legal Standard Breached:

1.       No citizen shall, on grounds only of religion, race, caste, sex, place of birth or any of them, be subject to any disability, liability, restriction or condition with regard to - (a)  access  to  shops,  public  restaurants,  hotels  and  places  of  public entertainment. (15 (2)(a,b) of IC-FR).
2.       Whoever, being a public servant but not being a member of a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, willfully neglects his/her duties required to be performed by him/her under this Act, shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to one year [sec. 4 SC/ST (PoA) Act].
3.       Whoever denies a member of a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe any customary right of passage to a place of public resort or obstructs such member so as to prevent him from using or having access to a place of public resort to which other members of public or any section thereof have a right to use or access to; - - shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to five years and with fine. (sec. 3(1)(xiv) SC/ST PoA Act).
4.       No one shall be deprived of his/her right to life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law. No one shall be subjected to arbitrary detention or imprisonment [Art. 21 IC-FR, Art. 9 UDHR, & Art. 9(1) ICCPR].
5.       Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person [Arts. 3 UDHR, Art. 6(1) ICCPR & Art. 5(b) CERD].
6.       No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment [Art. 5 UDHR and Art. 7 ICCPR].

Bakhshish Singh S/o Jeet Singh R/o H.No. 94, Village Sadarwala Tehsil & Distt Muktsar presently residing at Village Banawali Tehsil & Distt Fazilka. He was employed as a siri by one Shri Hoshiar Singh S/o Ajaib Singh (hereinafter referred to as “the employer”) R/o Village Sadarwala, Tehsil and District Muktsar in the year 1997 on payment of an advance amount of 3,000 rupees (three thousand rupees). Along with Bakshish Singh his wife Smt Kulwant Kaur was also employed for
housekeeping by the employer at his home. In 1997, the employer promised to pay Rs 7,000 (seven thousand rupees) per annum for both Bakshish Singh and his wife as their wages per annum for working in the agricultural farms of the employer and for housekeeping. Bakshish Singh was required to work at the beck and call of the employer, working from 6 AM to 9 PM.That, in the beginning of the year 2012 after 15 years of working with the employer, Bakshish Singh realized that the employer had no intention of paying any wages to him nor would his debt be satisfied no matter how many more years he works. He told the employer of his desire to leave the employment. The employer not only demanded a bonded debt of Rupees 95,000 (Ninety Five Thousand) but also that Bakshish Singh would be killed if he left the employment without returning the bonded debt. Bakshish Singh had no option but to discontinue his employment there and seek alternative employment. In this matter the village Panchayat was convened at the behest of the employer and Bakshish Singh appeared before the Panchayat along with his mother Smt Surjti Kaur and his four brothers Shri Rashpal Singh, Shri Puran Singh, Shri Balvir Singh and Shri Soni. The employer appeared before the Panchayat with his relatives namely – Shri Balvir Singh @ Beera (brother in law), Gurdas Singh S/o Hoshiar Singh, Jagjit Singh @ Bittu (brother of Hoshiar Singh), Baldev Singh (brother of Hoshiar Singh), Hardeep Singh, (Nephew of Hoshiar Singh), Sukka Singh (Nephew of Hoshiar Singh) with 10 goons who were not known to Bakshish Singh. The employer demanded the bonded debt from Bakshish Singh in front of the Panchayat or to give their house to him in lieu of the bonded debt. The employer threatened that he will forcibly take possession of the house of Bakshish Singh if the bonded debt is not cleared. Bakshish Singh and his family pleaded with the employer that he cannot return the bonded debt nor can he give up the only home he has to shelter his family. The employer said that he wants to teach Bakshish Singh a lesson for daring to leave the employment and along with his relatives and henchmen started beating Bakshish Singh and his family members brutally. Balvir Singh. The employer’s brother in law had carried his pistol with him and he threatened the finish off Bakshish Singh. The crowd that has gathered for the Panchayat tried break the fight. During the commotion, Bakshish Singh managed to escape and he ran for his life. The employer got infuriated that he escaped and he proceeded to Bakshish Singh’s house. Bakshish Singh’s wife and their children were at home at that time. The employer, some of his relatives and hencemen dragged Bakshish Singh’s wife outside the house while the others started tossing the belonging outside the house. The employer ordered that Bakshish Singh’s wife should be stripped and paraded nude in the village hurling abuses in the name of her caste. Some of the employers henchmen started beating her mercilessly while the employer’s relatives Kuldip Singh S/o Sucha Singh and Bittu S/o Sucha Singh started stripping Bakshish Singh’s wife outside their house on the road in the presence of neighbours and others persons of the village gathered there. Kuldip Singh and Bittu started groping her breasts while verbally abusing her using filthy words in the name of her caste. The neighbours intervened and prevented further humiliation toBakshish Singh’s wife.That, Bakshish Singh and his family have been forced to leave their home and village due to the threats of the employer. However, the parents of Bakshish Singh who are residents of the same village, i.e., village Sadarwala have told Bakshish Singh that there is a price of Rupees 50,000 as reward declared by the employer for whoever gives information of the whereabouts of Bakshish Singh. His parents face threats and physical assault on a regular basis by the employer and his henchmen on account of their son having dared to run away without clearing the bonded debt.

Bakshish Singh @ Sisa S/o Jeet Singh is R/o Village- Sadarwala, tehsil & District- Muktsar. He belongs to Majhabi Sikh caste which has been declared as a Scheduled Caste by the State Government of Punjab. From last 15 years he was working as a “Siri” for one Hoshiar Singh S/o Ajaib Singh who is from Village-Sadarwala, tehsil and District- Muktsar and is from Jatt Sikh community which is not a Scheduled Caste. His wife Kulwant Kaur was also working for the same employer from last 13 years to clean the cow dung. When he was employed by Hoshiar Singh he was given Rs. 3000/- as an advance which he used in his house. The employer Hoshiar Singh fixed his annual wages Rs. 7000/- per annum for  the first year but after that he never tell him that what salary he has fixed as his wages but in year 2012 the employer told Bakshish Singh that he has fixed Rs. 50000/- per annum and for his wife he said that he will gave her Rs.450/- per month including half K.G milk daily. Bakshish Singh was working from 5:00 a.m to 9:00 p.m for the employer and during the wheat and paddy transplantation the employer was extracting work from day and night from Bakshish Singh. The Hoshiar Singh was not allowing him for any weekly rest or over time to Bakshish Singh whenever he could not attend the work of the employer he was charged a fine of Rs. 150/- per day  and Rs.200/- per night and this fine’s amount was added in the advance amount the employer was charging an heavy interest on the whole amount. The employer never paid the earn wages of Bakshish Singh, when he requests him several times and demands his wages from the employer he has paid only Rs.1000/- per month and half K.G milk every day.Bakshish Singh’s daughter was working outside and she was managing the household expenses. When Bakshish Singh work for the employer continuously for 14 years then he demanded his wages from the employer but the employer refused to pay him any of his wages and when Bakshish Singh refused to work for him then the employer imposed the bonded debt of Rs. 95000/- on him and threaten him that if they will not pay him the bonded debt they will kill them. On 29-5-012 the employer called him in the village Pancayat. Bakshish Singh, his father, his mother Surjit Kaur and his four brothers of Bakshish Singh whose names are Rashpal Singh, Puran Singh Balvir Singh, Soni Singh were also with him they all went to the village Panchayat. In the village Panchayat the employer Hoshiar Singh, His brother in law Balvir Singh @ Bira, Gurdas Singh  S/o Hoshiar Singh, his borther’s son Hardeep Singh were also present.

There was Pistol in the hand of Balvir Singh @ Bira (who is the brother in law of Hoshiar Singh) Hoshiar Singh and his fellow persons threaten Bakshish Singh and his family members that if they will not return the bonded debt they will forcibly took the possession of his residential house and in the village Panchayat Hoshiar Singh and his fellow persons started to beat Bakshish Singh and Bakshish Singh ran away from the village Panchayat.