Congress’s Vadgam MLA Jignesh Mevani on Saturday questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah’s silence on alleged incidents of atrocities against Dalits, adivasis and other weaker sections in Gujarat, and announced that the party will hit the streets to raise the issue.
Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters in the Capital, Mevani accused the PM, the Home Minister and the RSS of “putting the values of Manusmriti above the Constitution”.
Citing the low conviction rate in cases of atrocities on Dalits, Mevani said at the national level, this figure is 30-35%, but in Gujarat it is only 3-5%, which means 95% of the culprits in the state go scot-free.
The Congress leader told reporters that several incidents of Dalit atrocities have been reported from Gujarat such as the murder of a 19-year-old Dalit youth in Amreli, the alleged setting ablaze of a Dalit senior citizen in Patan and the alleged gangrape of a Dalit girl in which BJP members are alleged to have been involved.
“The Congress is preparing to launch a massive demonstration in August-September against atrocities being afflicted on Dalits, adivasis and those from the weakened sections in Gujarat,” he announced.
