Dalit family flees after feudal lords capture their land (Times of India)
“A dalit family from remote Harpura village of Sarwar block of the district are trying to get shelter going from one village to another these days. They were thrashed and threatened not to enter their village again by feudal lords (samants) so that they can take over their land.
“Dalit Kanaram has a small piece of land in Harpura village and he ploughs the land to grow crops and support his family. ‘On January 3, when I went to dump the cattle dung in the field near my house, Kishanlal Jat, Jagdish Jat and others came and told me that the land belongs to them. When I opposed them, they started hitting me and broke my nose.’
“‘They also hit me on my chest and on parts of my thigh after which I get severe bruises. They threatened to leave the village in 24 hours or to face consequences,’ said Rameshwari Devi, wife of Kanaram.
“She added that during the night, the samants came to her house and beat her husband Kanaram, their eight year-old son Govind and seven-year-old Vishnu and one of her sons got a fracture in his hand, ‘After the beating, we fled from our house early in the morning and went to our relatives’ place. We also approached Sawar police station and after making few rounds, they registered a complaint. Considering the threat, we have no courage to enter own village and house,’ Rameshwari said.
“The woman is worried that since last one week their sons are not able to attend school and are not studying. She added that they left their cattle behind and no one is there to feed them. ‘We cannot live all our life with our relatives and therefore wanted to return back to our village,’ she said. [...]
“The Jats are dominating in this zone and the conflict there is mostly on land as the Bisalpur dam is nearby, the underground water level is good and bear good crops.”
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