M A I N   N E W S

Dalits’ houses set ablaze in Haryana
Tribune News Service

Hisar, April 21
A man and his disabled daughter were killed when a group of villagers torched over a dozen houses belonging to the Dalits at Mirchpur village near here today. Several others were injured in the attack.

The clash took place before noon. An armed group of villagers stormed the locality housing Dalit families and set about a dozen houses ablaze. While the able-bodied fled, the disabled girl, Suman, was trapped inside. Her body was recovered by firemen.

The girl’s father, who was badly burnt, died in hospital.

Tension between two communities in the village has been surfacing off and on for the past more than a decade. In 2000, Dalit families wanted to dig a pond on a piece of land which they claimed had been in their possession since 1947.

However, other communities in the village opposed the move. Since then there have been intermittent clashes between these communities. Sources say tension in the village had been brewing since two days following a minor incident. A youth belonging to a “higher caste” was passing by some Dalit houses when a dog barked at him. The youth flung a stone at the animal. This triggered an argument between Dalit youths and villagers from other communities.

This morning police officials had gone to the village to defuse the tension, but in vain.

The Deputy Commissioner and the Superintendent of Police are in the village to ensure the situation does not worsen and to provide relief to the families who have lost their homes. The police has registered a case and detained 25 persons.