Tension between Dalit and upper-caste groups was reported in Phagwara city of Punjab again on Tuesday, even as Chief Minister Amarinder Singh approved the Dalit activists’ demand to rename Gol Chowk as Samvidhan Chowk. Four people were injured on April 13 after the demand by Dalit leaders led to clashes in the city.
On Tuesday, a bookshop owner in one of the biggest markets of the city reopened his shop after a few days, but Dalit activists allegedly forced him to shut it down, The Times of India reported. The activists had accused the shopkeeper a few days ago of using casteist words against Dalits.
Soon, other shopkeepers in the market closed their shops in protest, and staged a demonstration on Banga Road. Local politicians and activists of the General Samaj Manch joined the protest and demanded the arrest of two Dalit leaders who they claim were behind the April 13 clashes.
The city’s mayor, Arun Khosla of the Bharatiya Janata Party, said the protest would continue until the two leaders – Jarnail Nangal of Lok Insaaf Party and Harbhajan Suman of Ambedkar Sena Mool Niwasi – were arrested, The Indian Express reported. Khosla said Suman had put up the posters to rename Gol Chowk as Samvidhan Chowk on April 13, which led to clashes. Activists of the General Samaj Manch said the two leaders had not been arrested yet despite being booked.
Meanwhile, Dalit leader Rajinder Ghera ended his indefinite strike on Tuesday, a day after the Kapurthala police removed the names of seven Dalits from the First Information Report filed after the clashes, The Tribune reported.
Gol Chowk renamed
After meeting a delegation of the Dalit Samaj and families of those who were injured in the violence on April 13, Chief Minister Amarinder Singh asked local authorities to start the process to rename Gol Chowk as Samvidhan Chowk, PTI reported.
Around a dozen Congress leaders from Phagwara resigned from their party posts in protest, according to The Indian Express.
“There is nothing wrong in naming the roundabout as Samvidhan Chowk, as our Constitution does not belong to any particular caste or creed and we all Indians are proud of it,” Singh said. The word “Samvidhan” is Hindi for the Constitution.
The mayor, Arun Khosla, said the municipal corporation would not approve of the change in name.
He also asked Director General of Police Suresh Arora to assess whether those involved in clashes could be charged under stringent provisions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!