Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday accused Gujarat’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of promoting a model of injustice and oppression against Dalits and tribal communities and vowed to make the voice of the victims heard.
The Congress leader shared a video of his interaction with a delegation from Gujarat, including those affected by the 2016 Una flogging case, and expressed regret that the victims in the flogging case are still waiting for justice.
Gandhi’s reaction came against the backdrop of the ruling issued on March 17 by a special court in Gir Somnath district of Gujarat, which sentenced five people to five years in prison. The court also acquitted 35 others of the July 11, 2016 attack, when more than 40 upper caste men stripped and flogged four Dalit men for skinning dead cattle, claiming they had killed the cow. The brutal attack was recorded on a mobile phone and sparked widespread outrage across the country.
“About 10 years ago, the Una incident shook the entire nation. Some Dalit youth were publicly stripped naked and severely beaten. I stood with their families at that time. But it is extremely unfortunate that even after a decade, they have not received justice, and their wounds have not healed; instead, the situation has worsened,” Gandhi said in a post accompanying his YouTube video.
He added: “Onna’s victims are still waiting for justice. This long wait for justice, more than 10 years, is a gross injustice in itself. This is not just a matter of a few incidents, but a failure in a system where the voices of the vulnerable are suppressed and the perpetrators are protected.”
“As I listened to the delegation today, it became clear that instead of improving, the situation has become more terrible… Under the BJP government in Gujarat, the atmosphere of hatred, discrimination and atrocities against Dalits and tribal communities has continued to deepen,” he said.
The delegation complained that the state government had not fulfilled its promises to assist the victims. A family representative told Gandhi: “It has been 10 years, and no request has been met. The court has released the police, and we fear for our lives.” Another member said that he suffered 19 fractures after an attack by the mining mafia in the state, noting that they have the support of high-ranking officials.
