Faridabad: Residents of a village in Haryana on the outskirts of Delhi have blocked the Faridabad-Ballabhgarh highway in protest against the death of two young Dalit children who were burnt alive while they were asleep. Their house was set on fire on Monday, allegedly by members of an upper caste community.
Seven policemen who were part of a team deployed for the security of Dalits in the village about a year ago after a similar attack have been suspended.
The children's father has alleged that around about 2 am on Monday while his family was asleep, their house in Sonped on the outskirts of Delhi was attacked by some members of the Thakur community with whom they had a long-running quarrel.
"We were sleeping when they poured petrol through the window. I smelt the petrol and tried to wake my wife but by then the fire had started. My children died in the fire," said Jitender, 31, who was injured in the attack.
His wife Rekha, 28, is in a hospital in Delhi with 70 per cent burns. His two-and-a-half year old son Vaibhav and daughter Divya, 11 months old, died in the fire. Post-mortem of both the children will be conducted at a Delhi hospital today. Their bodies will be handed over to the family later in the day.
11 people, including a father-son duo, have been booked in the case. Three of them have been arrested so far, eight others are absconding. The village, which is dominated by Thakurs and has only a few Dalit families, is tense and security has been tightened, the police said.
According to Jitender's brother Shiv Kumar, last year in October, three people from the Thakur community were killed in a scuffle that broke out between the two communities over allegations of a stolen cellphone and their relative Dalbir was sent to jail. Two months later, Jitender's family was allegedly attacked and their home was burnt down.
"But they were not home and only their cattle was killed. Since then, constables were assigned to guard Jitender and his family," Shiv Kumar said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is expectedly to meet the family today. Haryana is governed by the BJP, which also leads the ruling coalition at the Centre. Yesterday, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh called up Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and has asked him to ensure the safety of Dalit families.
A compensation of Rs. 10 lakh has been announced for the family by the Haryana government.
