Even as the reverberations of the violence inflicted on a group of Dalit men by “cow protection” vigilanties near the small Gujarat town of Una , are felt in Parliament, the protest continue to spread accross the states. Large part of Saurashtra , the region rocked most by agitations led by Dali groups where practically shut down on wednesday after a Bandh call and different mode of protest adopted. It is the protest that appears to have grown organically in response to the violence led by the man bore on 11 july, a video of which has been posted by one of the assailants. They were stripped, flogged, bound and paraded on accusation that they had killed a cow for skinning. The various modes of protest must be seen as a cry for redressal and systematic social change all around. Some have protested by committing suicide. There has been mobilisation on the streets accross Gujarat, with one policeman sccumbing to injuries after stone pelting by protesters. This is a rage that needs a holistic and comprehensive response rather than a confrontationist approach relying heavily on firefighting.
Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel has met the victims. Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the atrocity and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh spoke about the assault in Parliament, terming such acts against Dalits a social evil that everyone must come together to combat.The victims of the Una assault must be reassured by the authorities seeing to it that their assailants are punished; moreover the administration should assure their safety so that reprisals are not visited upon them. Cow protection (Gau Raksha) cannot be a cover for the pursuit of the kind of aggressive vigilantism that has been witnessed in different parts of the country, more often than not as an exercise in communal consolidation. That violence and intimidation in the name of cow(beef) will not be tolerated is a message that needs to go quickly and unequivocally- not only from the Gujarat government but also from the centre.
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