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Violent Dalit protests in Mumbai after death of 28-year-old Pune man, schools and colleges shut

By FnF Correspondent | PUBLISHED: 02, Jan 2018, 16:14 pm IST | UPDATED: 02, Jan 2018, 16:49 pm IST

Violent Dalit protests in Mumbai after death of 28-year-old Pune man, schools and colleges shut Mumbai: Violent protests erupted in several parts of Mumbai with people damaging a BEST bus, blocking roads and holding a rail roko on Tuesday, a day after a 28-year-old Dalit died in Pune district following an altercation between two groups during celebrations to mark the bicentenary of a British-Peshwa war.

Protests broke out in the suburbs of Ghatkopar, Chembur, Powai, Mulund and Thane, after activists from the Republican Party of India (RPI) and their followers stepped out in large numbers to object to the death of Sanaswadi resident Rahul Phatangale, who succumbed to head injuries on Monday, police officials said.

As tension built, many shopkeepers downed their shutters in Ramabai Nagar in Ghatkopar, Chembur and Mulund.

Angry protesters damaged a bus near Chembur golf course, blocked roads at PL Lokhande Marg and Amar Mahal junction in Chembur and in Adarsh Nagar at Govandi, while RPI workers staged a rail roko at Chembur station, blocking a local train at 11.45am for around 25 minutes.

As a result, harbour line services were delayed by around 15 minutes. “Some RPI workers refused to move off the tracks. Services resumed only after they left,” said an official from the Railway protection Force, who did not wish to be named.

The agitation also led to traffic snarls on the Eastern Express Highway, at Ghatkopar.

“Don’t believe in rumours. Traffic on the Eastern Express Highway was affected due to the protests, but it’s moving now. Traffic at Chembur Naka is still affected. There is nothing to panic. Verify facts with police officers and men before posting anything on social media,” the Mumbai police tweeted.

The Mumbai police maintained that the situation is under control.”Shops were not closed forcibly in Mulund. People who took part in the agitation requested shopkeepers to close their shops. The situation is under control,” said Shripad Kale, senior police inspector, Mulund police station.

On Monday, one person died and four were injured after violence broke out in Bhima Koregaon in Pune district, near the memorial of an 1818 war between the British and the Peshwas.

Thousands of Dalits gather at Bhima Koregaon every year to mark the anniversary of the war between the British, who had several Dalit soldiers in their regiment, and the Peshwas, then rulers of parts of Maharashtra.The Dalit community believes that the British won the war and that Dalit soldiers played a key role in defeating the Peshwas, who were said to have instituted oppressive caste practices. Celebrations gathered momentum in 1927 after BR Ambedkar visited the site.
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