Caste Violence Leads to Migration
Channel: VideoVolunteers
Date: 2011-03-04

A Dalit colony in Mirjpur has slowly been abandoned after a violent caste-related conflict last year. Almost one year ago, our CC Amit Kumar had made a video on this same incident, where two Dalits - a disabled father and his daughter - were burned alive in their house in an attack by members of the Jat caste. More than twenty houses were burned to the ground and over the last year, the case has been moved to Delhi for reasons of impartiality and is being investigated. In the mean time, the Dalits from Mirjpur have slowly been leaving the village in search of employment and security. "I felt really bad," says Satyawan, who is from an OBC himself. "Last year, for twelve days there were protests and I was truly scared. Everything was shut down, the Jat rioters were breaking down bus stands and the schools were closed, they were burning things because they wanted the case to be conducted in Haryana." Amid this chaos, the Dalits started packing and moving to Hissar and Mirjpur is now derelict and deserted. "The only ones left are the ones who want to run for MLA positions," Satyawan tells us. "What is upsetting is how people change during something like this. There were several Jat teachers I knew who used to discourage castism. But when all this happened, they forgot their own words. That is what makes me sad."

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http://amara.org/v/C0aU/