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Akhir Hamari Azadi Kab………….?

06 August, 2010

Dear Friends,

On the eve of Indian Independence, a very pertinent question of ‘what does freedom means to us', is being posed by the oppressed and vulnerable people of India. The question is valid in the light of the grave facts that over 75% of India 's population still live on less than half a dollar per day. Big games shows, growth of rich people in India, over emphasis on the successes of a few individuals can not really hide the dirty facts of our daily life that people still eat rats in many parts of the country, farmers are committing suicide and a particular community still carry night soil over head. Though, India became an independent nation over six decades back and adopted a secular socialist constitution giving equal opportunities to its citizens irrespective of their castes, religion and gender in the basic framework of the constitution yet a large portion of population are victims of discrimination based on caste and gender prejudices.

Is it not shocking that despite the constitutional prohibition on untouchability, it is still practiced in a very large parts of our country. It's very much visible in the villages even today and incidents of boycott of mid day meal cooked by Dalit women have regularly been reported in the media. How are we going to educate our children in school if the basic principals of human rights of equality are violated and exonerated by teachers and governments?

Food grains are rotting in FCI go downs while thousands of families are on the verge of starvation and hunger. Children are malnourished, starved as ICDS schemes and rural health programmes are almost defunct. The depressed working classes are sweating their blood to get two-square meal a day. The much publicized MNREGA has turned out to be another scheme based on contract without helping the rural poor. Rampant corruption in each and every government department has worsened the situation as every programme has become victim of large scale corruption which seems to have been institutionalized.

While we appreciate the rise of new political class as well as growing middle classes from the various marginalized communities due to giant efforts by great icons like Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Jyoti Ba Phule, EV Ramasamy Naicar and other great social reformers who questioned the very principals of the Varnashram dharma and gave the oppressed a new meaning of their life and struggle. Yet, various contradictions have also surfaced in the movements which can only be overcome through constant struggles of people's issues. Though many feel that the real issues of Dalits are empowerment and participation and not untouchability and discrimination, yet the fact remain that both untouchability and discrimination remain at every level. It has changed the colour and forms. Therefore, while supporting demand for equal and fair representation of Dalits in all spheres of our parliamentary structure, we should not shy away from accepting a fact that some of the Dalit communities have really lagged behind and they still face the same oppression as several hundreds years back. And that to fight against the oppression need to be developed as a civil rights movement and not just the responsibility of the victims alone.

Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar said that the Land should be Nationalized and re-distributed, so that there is no landlessness. But the lack of political will has kept the land reform agenda in the official files. Ceiling Act has not been implemented in the rural areas while in urban area this law has been removed. Land has become the assets of big industrial houses and land mafia as a result of new economic agenda being pushed by private corporations and their international counterparts. A new set of landlessness is growing in the country.

Hence , on 13 th   August 2010, hundreds of people from different Dalit-Bahujan, Adivasi, Muslim communities are taking out their protest marches and will hand over their demands to local government authorities in their respective regions. We request you to kindly join us and support in this struggle. We would also request you to send your endorsements. The list of programmes in different areas with contact person is given below.

For People's Alliance Against Untouchability,

V.B Rawat,

D.Leena

Raju Mahar,

Rajkapoor Rawat,

Sangeeta,

D.S.Negi,

Sarwar Raza,

Suresh Yadav,

Deepmala,

Anand Lakhan,

Dheeraj,

Munni Begum,

Shivlal Singh,

Suman Singh,

Jagdish Yadav,

Mushtaq,

Ramapati Ram Shashtri

Nandlal

A. Jaya Kumar

I. Chandraiah

Ramji Singh

Hemalata Kansotia

Durga Jha

Neha and Richa Rawat

 


 

JOIN THE PROTEST RALLY TO RECLAIM DIGNITY

AND RECLAIM RIGHT TO LIFE

 

13 TH AUGUST 2010

 

S.No.

Place

Time

Contact person

  1.  

Shahid Park , Mohammadabad, Gazipur District, UP

12 noon to 4 pm

Raj Kapur Rawat: 09454020806

Ramapati Ram Shashtri: 09454554955

  1.  

Hikkatullah Park , Fatehpur,

District Fatehpur, UP

12 noon to 4 pm

Dalit Yuva Garima Manch

Dheeraj: 09889839072

 

  1.  

SDM office, Deoria.

District Deoria, UP

10am to 2 pm

Mushahar Swabhiman Manch

Sangeeta: 09651495903

  1.  

MusaNagar,

District Kanpur (rural)

11 am to 2 pm

Arpit Gramin Vikas Sansthan

Shivlal: 09839232236

  1.  

Jaunpur

District Jaunpur, UP

12 noon to 4 pm

Munni Begum: 09919167712

  1.  

Dhabora,

District Reva, MP

12 noon to 4 pm

Panchsheel Sewa Sansthan

Jagdish: 09424745340

  1.  

Indore . MP

12 noon to 4 pm

Deenbandhu Samajik Sansthan

Anand Lakhan: 09893642880

  1.  

Bettiah,

District W. Champaran

Bihar

12 noon to 4 pm

Adhaar

Nandlal: 09934492049