Dalit devotees in Madhya Pradesh barred from providing prayers at Shiva temples throughout Mahashivratri
3 min readExpress News Service
BHOPAL: In two separate incidents, villagers belonging to the Dalit group have been barred from providing prayers at Shiva temples in Madhya Pradesh throughout Mahashivratri on Saturday.
Women belonging to the Balai group in Chhoti Kasrawad village of Khargone district mentioned that the dominant caste women and men blocked their households from providing prayers and assaulted their youngsters together with two ladies.
“They (men belonging to the dominant Darbar caste) even threatened to throw our children out from the temple,” one Sharmila Bai alleged.
The native chief of the Bhim Army Sunil Chouhan alleged that although the police have filed a case within the matter, the identify of the primary accused was not added to the FIR.
According to sub-divisional officer police (SDOP-Mandaleshwar) Manohar Singh Gavali, “there was a quarrel between two groups of devotees while offering prayers at the temple. On the complaint of one group, an FIR has been lodged against five persons from another group.”
The FIR was lodged u/s 294, 323, and 34 IPC, moreover provisions of the SC/ST (Atrocities) Act. But nowhere within the FIR was it talked about that Dalit ladies, males, and kids have been stopped from worshiping on the temple. Instead, it was talked about that pushing and shoving throughout prayers resulted in quarrels, resulting in violent assault.
Meanwhile, within the adjoining Khandwa district’s Bailwadi village of Bharadi village panchayat, Dalit devotees have been reportedly stopped by the temple priest from providing prayers on the temple on Mahashivratri. However, the native police rushed to the spot and intervened, after which the Dalit individuals have been allowed to supply prayers on the temple.
BHOPAL: In two separate incidents, villagers belonging to the Dalit group have been barred from providing prayers at Shiva temples in Madhya Pradesh throughout Mahashivratri on Saturday.
Women belonging to the Balai group in Chhoti Kasrawad village of Khargone district mentioned that the dominant caste women and men blocked their households from providing prayers and assaulted their youngsters together with two ladies.
“They (men belonging to the dominant Darbar caste) even threatened to throw our children out from the temple,” one Sharmila Bai alleged.
The native chief of the Bhim Army Sunil Chouhan alleged that although the police have filed a case within the matter, the identify of the primary accused was not added to the FIR.
According to sub-divisional officer police (SDOP-Mandaleshwar) Manohar Singh Gavali, “there was a quarrel between two groups of devotees while offering prayers at the temple. On the complaint of one group, an FIR has been lodged against five persons from another group.”
The FIR was lodged u/s 294, 323, and 34 IPC, moreover provisions of the SC/ST (Atrocities) Act. But nowhere within the FIR was it talked about that Dalit ladies, males, and kids have been stopped from worshiping on the temple. Instead, it was talked about that pushing and shoving throughout prayers resulted in quarrels, resulting in violent assault.
Meanwhile, within the adjoining Khandwa district’s Bailwadi village of Bharadi village panchayat, Dalit devotees have been reportedly stopped by the temple priest from providing prayers on the temple on Mahashivratri. However, the native police rushed to the spot and intervened, after which the Dalit individuals have been allowed to supply prayers on the temple.
