HVK Archives: Gujarat spillover
Gujarat spillover - The Times of India
Editorial
()
22 July 1997
Title: Gujarat spillover
Author: Editorial
Publication: The Times of India
Date: July 22, 1997
The Shankarsinh Vaghela government in Gujarat cannot evade responsibility
for the string of bandhs and the concomitant violence in the aftermath of
the desecration of B R Ambedkar's statue in Mumbai. Though the state-wide
bandh was called by the Dalit organisations, the ruling Rashtriya Janata
Party, in conjunction with the Congress, joined in to support it,
reflecting a cynical disregard of public interest that has become the
hallmark of political parties in recent days. Clearly, the motivation was
to appropriate the Dalit vote bank and to embarrass the BJP under whose
government the Mumbai incident had taken place. If in the resulting
violence, lives were lost, the economy of the state received a body blow
and the animosity between the Dalits and the upper castes was stoked, the
government was hardly concerned. According to estimates by the Gujarat
Chamber of Commerce, the loss from the state-wide bandh on July 16 was a
whopping Rs 500 crore. As the chamber's president, Mr S Lalbhai, pointed
out in a statement to the Press, the police remained inactive, giving a
free hand to anti-social elements indulging in rioting and arson. This is
not surprising considering that the ruling party and its main prop, the
Congress, were supporting the bandh call enthusiastically. That Mr Vaghela
pulled back by announcing a 'ban' on subsequent bandhs (which was violated
with impunity) and dropping his earlier plan of ceremoniously receiving the
urns containing the ashes of those who hid succumbed to police bullets in
Mumbai was small consolation.
While it is undeniable that the Gujarat Dalits allowed themselves to be
used as political pawns as so often in the past, it would be unwise to
ignore the undercurrents of rising Dalit consciousness and the community's
growing ability to articulate its concerns. The administration has failed
to do anything substantive by way of reform for the Dalits; minimum wage
provisions remain unimplemented, land distribution among the rural Dalits
has not taken place nor has the abhorrent practice of carrying nightsoil on
head been abolished. All this is bound to have left a deep imprint on the
Dalit psyche. The growing conspicuous consumption of the rich in urban
areas has also fuelled resentment among the Dalit youth that they are being
exploited economically. Atrocities against the Dalits in Gujarat are also
among the highest in the country. It is time the political parties and the
Dalit leaders who have vested interests realise that the Dalits cannot be
fed On slogans and gimmicks alone. A growing number of them are beginning
to think and act independent. Instead of paying lip-service to the Dalit
cause, the Vaghela government would do well to address their genuine
concerns. Failure to do so could seriously jeopardise social harmony in
the state and negate the effects of economic development.
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