Rajkumar Badole, a Dalit himself, admitted there is resentment among the community which comes out during protests, but defended the administration.
Mumbai: Although the police force at Bhima-Koregaon on 1 January may have been inadequate, they did a good job of ensuring the violence at the Dalit gathering did not spiral out of control, Maharashtra’s social justice minister Rajkumar Badole said on Thursday.
One person died and several others were injured when stones were pelted and vehicles were torched in villages around Bhima-Koregaon near Pune.
Dalit leaders, as well as politicians from across parties, have questioned the state government’s failure to anticipate the unrest, although the gathering this year was much bigger in scale – on account of it being the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Bhima-Koregaon – and a few Right-wing groups had objected to it.
Badole hinted that the authorities may not have anticipated the trouble.
“Members of the Dalit society have been gathering at Bhima Koregaon every year on 1 January. Prior to this year, there was never any unrest there. In that context, the police did their duty well, although they may have been fewer in number,” Badole told ThePrint in a telephone interview.
“None of this happened because of any neglect by the police. The state home department too has done its duty properly in this matter.”
The violence occurred when Dalits from across the country were making their way for the bicentenary celebration of the 1818 battle of Bhima-Koregaon. As per legend, soldiers from the Mahar community, considered untouchables, fought for the British East India Company and overthrew a much stronger contingent representing the Peshwa rulers.
Dalit resentment
A number of Dalit protestors across the state have highlighted the continued caste discrimination and oppression they consistently face. And Badole, who hails from a Scheduled Caste in Gondia district, agreed that there is some resentment among the Dalit community.
“There is some resentment and that comes out during such protests. But the agitation was basically to emphasise that this is Mahatma Jyotirao Phule’s Maharashtra, and social harmony and equality should be maintained. This is all that the Dalit community wants,” he insisted.
Badole stressed that the agitation following the Bhima-Koregaon incident was not against any political party, and that there was no larger issue behind the protests.
“The sole reason for the protests was that at an event to mark 200 years of the Bhima-Koregaon battle, there was suddenly violence and stone pelting, upsetting the Dalit community. It was definitely not an expression against any particular political party,” he said.
Political implications
Dalits constitute about 11 per cent of Maharashtra’s population, and the BJP currently holds 15 of the 29 seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes in the Maharashtra assembly.
Political experts say with the state headed to polls in just under two years, the BJP will have to walk a tightrope, assuaging Dalits on the back of a wave of Maratha protests, and taking action against Right-wing groups that Dalit leaders have identified as having instigated Monday’s violence.
Analysts say the events of this week have politically isolated the BJP, as Wednesday’s Maharashtra bandh, which saw all backward classes coming together, was primarily against the government’s failure at preventing the Bhima-Koregaon violence.
Opposition parties and the BJP’s bitter ally Shiv Sena also criticised the failure of the state home department. Moreover, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) supported the bandh, saying there is a need to mobilise all sections against the RSS.
Badole defended his party, saying the BJP had always worked for the Dalits without any political intentions, and no one should take political advantage of the current situation.
“We ensured that we purchase the house Dr B.R. Ambedkar had lived in while studying in London. We are fast-tracking the Ambedkar memorial at Indu Mills (in Mumbai). We have even ensured that we maintain the importance of the memorial to commemorate the Bhima-Koregaon war at the village,” he said.
“Just a few months ago, the government removed encroachments around the memorial. We have done all this not out of any political interests.”
Badole also dismissed the idea of the BJP’s political isolation. “The Leftist parties supporting Dalit protests does not mean anything politically. Babasaheb Ambedkar’s ideology doesn’t align with Leftist ideology. His path is Buddhism, while Leftists believe in rebellion and violence,” he said.
“Dalits follow Dr Ambedkar’s ideology of finding solutions to problems within the framework of the Indian Constitution.”