A district court in Karnataka on Thursday sentenced 101 persons for their involvement in a mob attack on Dalits in the state’s Koppal district ten years ago, reported The Indian Express. Ninety-eight of them were handed life terms while three were given five-year sentences.
The incident occurred on August 29, 2014, in the Marukumbi village, where the homes of three Dalit families were torched. Over 30 people suffered injuries as a mob dragged Dalit men and women from their homes and assaulted them.
“This matter appears to be a case of caste violence rather than an ordinary mob violence,” Judge C Chandra Sekar observed.
The 101 persons were convicted under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The charge sheet filed by the Gangavathi Rural Police named 117 persons, 16 of whom died during the lengthy trial, according to The Times of India.
The incident attracted nationwide attention, prompting several Dalit leaders to march from Koppal to Bengaluru in protest. Later that year, Veeresh Marukumbi, a prominent Dalit leader who led the demonstrations, was found dead near Koppal railway station.
While pronouncing the sentences, Judge C Chandra Sekar observed that Scheduled Castes and Tribes remain vulnerable and face “regular indignities and harassment” despite measures aimed at improving their socio-economic status. The judge further emphasised that leniency would constitute a travesty of justice as the assaults involved both physical harm and the degradation of the victims’ dignity.
The court opted not to impose heavy fines on the convicts, noting that most were economically disadvantaged, predominantly poor farmers, The Indian Express reported.
“Taking note of the background of the accused, particularly the economic background, it appears to me that no purpose would be served in imposing hefty fines, for they may not be in a position to pay or deposit the same,” it said.
Quoting a statement by African-American singer Marian Anderson on social justice, the court said: “No matter how big a nation is, it is no stronger than its weakest people, and as long as you keep a person down, some part of you has to be down there to hold him down, so it means you cannot soar as you might otherwise.”
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