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Business News/ Politics / Policy/  Bihar police stepping up vigil to shield Dalits ahead of assembly polls
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Bihar police stepping up vigil to shield Dalits ahead of assembly polls

State machinery on guard amid renewed focus on law and order situation in Bihar ahead of election

Chief minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) is fighting the forthcoming election in alliance with Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress party. Photo: Santosh Kumar/HTPremium
Chief minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) is fighting the forthcoming election in alliance with Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress party. Photo: Santosh Kumar/HT

New Delhi: With elections to the Bihar assembly due in a couple of months, the state police is stepping up its vigil to shield Dalit voters from possible intimidation and violence in the run-up to the polls that will pit an alliance led by the ruling Janata Dal (United), or JD(U), against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The state machinery is on guard amid renewed focus on the law and order situation in Bihar ahead of the polls. On a recent visit to the state, Prime Minister Narendra Modi likened Bihar’s law and order situation to a “jungle raj".

“Since elections are just round the corner, voters will be intimidated," said P.K. Thakur, director general of Bihar Police. “There will be patrolling. Offenders are always there, preventive actions are being taken."

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) revealed that there has been a consistent increase in crimes against Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs) in Bihar over the last three years. According to NCRB data for 2014, for every 100,000 people belong to SCs, 7,893 crimes were registered in the state, the third highest for a state, trailing only Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.

The state police chief said one reason why the figure was so high was that even verbal abuse is counted as a crime.

“Serious offences like murders and rapes have not been much if we talk about SCs," Thakur said. “According to the records that we have, most of the cases are of verbal abuse, which is a crime under the Prevention of Atrocities Act."

He cited a statistic to prove his point. In 2013, out of 6,721 reported cases of crime against SCs, as many as 5,584 pertained to verbal abuse.

“We have SC police stations in all districts, and under the law, it is mandatory for us to register complain. Trend has been the same even in 2014," said Thakur.

The BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which has made law and order a key plank of its campaign along with economic development, says lawlessness has increased and the state administration is being a mute spectator.

“Crime against schedule castes has definitely increased. Law and order situation is out of hand and I don’t understand why the administration is quiet," said BJP leader from Bihar and former Union minister C.P. Thakur. “Election commissioner will have to take care of this situation and hold elections with paramilitary forces."

To be sure, Dalits in Bihar have become more aware and assertive about their rights, and don’t hesitate to make themselves heard, which some analysts think is the reason for the high number of cases of crime against SCs registered in the state.

“Dalits, particularly in North India, have started confronting the caste dominance," said Chandra Bhan Prasad, a Dalit thinker and political commentator.

“Newly empowered Other Backward Classes (OBCs), after their economic empowerment, are looking for social empowerment. They are acting as new Rajputs and Thakurs, expecting Dalits to accept them. But due to economic reforms, social development and Dalit migration to other cities, Dalits are sensing freedom," he said. “They now realize violence from Thakurs and OBCs. As a result, you can see the growing number of reported cases, which is a good sign."

Chief minister Nitish Kumar’s JD(U) is fighting the forthcoming election in alliance with Lalu Prasad’s Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Congress party. The JD(U) won the last assembly polls as an ally of the BJP, with which it parted ways in 2013 after Narendra Modi was named to lead the latter’s 2014 general election campaign.

In last year’s general election, the BJP and its allies won 31 out of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar in a blow to the JD(U).

The JD(U) claims data about crimes against Dalits in Bihar won’t be a factor in the state polls.

“Dalits have never been satisfied with what the ruling party is doing. They have always had a feeling that they are sidelined and their rights are taken away," said senior party leader Shyam Rajak. “Nitish Kumar has done a lot for them. Now they do not want to stay quiet and get dominated. They are reporting, they are speaking for themselves. Another thing I want to make clear is that this data cannot affect our votes in the coming election."

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Published: 28 Aug 2015, 12:27 AM IST
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